I Know My Own, They Know Me

Text: John 10:11-16

This last week was Call Week at our seminaries in Fort Wayne and St. Louis. Call Day is the day where our fourth-year seminarians find out where the Lord is sending them to tend His flock. Five years ago, I myself was in that position. We give thanks to God for raising up servants for His Church, and we pray that He would continue to do so more and more even as we currently face a shortage of pastors. And, not just pastors, but Lutheran school teachers and principals, as well. The topic of Call Day has caused me to reflect back on my time at seminary, and there’s something to comes to mind this week. In the Gospel text, Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me, just as the Father know Me and I know the Father.” (John 10:14-15, ESV)

At seminary we had daily chapel services. They were held throughout the day, but the main service was at 10 a.m. On Wednesdays, and on Feasts Days, we received the Lord’s Supper. The distribution took place in continuous fashion; you would come and kneel, receive the Sacrament, and then return to your seat with the dismissal being after all had communed. The professors were the communion assistants. As they served, they would speak the words we normally hear: “The body of Christ, the blood of Christ.” One particular professor, when he assisted would always say, “the body of Christ for you, the blood of Christ for you.” He would emphasize that Christ’s body was broken and His blood was shed not just for the world in general, but also for you in particular. His body and blood were given for you, for the forgiveness of your sins; you are known to Christ. That’s what Jesus says this week. He is the Good Shepherd who knows us each by name, and He makes Himself known to each of us in His Word and Sacrament.

I.

This Sunday, the Third Sunday of Easter, is the one commonly called “Good Shepherd Sunday.” This idea is brought out very clearly by the readings. In the Gospel text we hear our Lord describing Himself to us as a good or noble shepherd, a contrast to the hired hand who flees at the sign of a wolf. This idea would’ve been familiar to our Lord’s initial audience as shepherding was a very common profession at that time in that part of the world. But still, the image of a shepherd is one we can bring up in our minds. It’s the job of a shepherd to care for his sheep. During the day, it’s his job to lead the sheep to good pasture. Then, at night his is to guide them back to their pen – which, in Jesus’ time, was often a cave. Once they were all in, the shepherd would then lay at the entrance. Nothing could go in our out without his say so.

One aspect of shepherding in Jesus’ time, and maybe now, was that the shepherd had a name for each sheep. Each of his sheep he knew by name. They weren’t just a flock of nameless animals, but each had a name and was precious to the shepherd. This is where Jesus is going when He said, “I am the good shepherd. I know My own…just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father.” Scripture often describes the Church, God’s people – us – as a flock. Just as a shepherd knows the name of each of his sheep, so also are we known to our Lord. When He looks upon us, He doesn’t just see us as just a mass of nameless people, but each of us, individually, as a beloved little lamb. We are each precious lambs of the Good Shepherd.

As a good shepherd, Jesus said, He lays down His life for the sake of His sheep. He is not like a hired hand who, “sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees.” (Jn 10:12) The hired flees because the sheep aren’t his and he doesn’t care if they die. We are Jesus’ sheep and He does care if we die, if we die eternally. Therefore, being our Good Shepherd, He did what only He could do – He laid down His life in our place. Because Jesus is God, His death is able to atone for the sins of the world, and even ours. This is why the one professor at seminary would say “for you,” during the distribution. Jesus says He knows His sheep. We are His sheep. Therefore, He knows us, and laid down His life for us – not just for the world, but for you and for me. 

II.

Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me.” This is another comforting word for us today. As you know, the New Testament was originally delivered to us by the Holy Spirit through the Apostles not in English, but in Greek. And, though the translation we’re using for the readings is generally speaking very good and accurate, every now and then there are spots that could be tightened up. Here is one of them. We all know this passage as it is in the bulletin, but it could also be rendered: “I am the Good Shepherd, and I know My own, and I am known by My own.” Translating it this way – though a little more wonky to say – keeps the focus on the Good Shepherd who not only lays down His life for each of us, but also makes Himself known to each of us.

How does He do that? That is Judas’ question in John 14 – not Iscariot, the other Judas. He asked Jesus, “‘Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?’ Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will keep My Word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.’” (Jn. 14:22-23) This is to say, Jesus makes Himself known to us – He reveals Himself to us, His sheep – through His Word. The Holy Spirit works through the Sacred Scriptures to reveal Christ to us and draws us to Him through the same. Christ makes Himself known to us through the written Scriptures and through His visible Word in the Sacraments. In Holy Baptism, He unites us to His own death and resurrection. In the Lord’s Supper, He makes Himself known to us by giving us His true body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus, our Good Shepherd, knows each of us by name. He laid down His life for us. He makes Himself known to us, His sheep, by His Word and Sacrament.

Let this by our encouragement this Sunday. The Latin title for this Sunday comes from Psalm 33, where it says, “the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.” (33:5) The Lord is our Good Shepherd who knows us each by name. As our Shepherd, He gave His own life into death so that we might be forgiven. Now, He continues to make Himself known to us in His Word and Sacrament – even in just a few moments. Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me.” Amen.

Peace the World Cannot Give

Text: John 20:19-31

These last Advent and Lenten seasons we continued our normal practice of midweek services. During those times in the Church year, we pause to focus on the mercy and love of our God toward us. In both seasons we used a service called “Evening Prayer.” It’s a beautiful service, as most would agree. In it, we sing a canticle after the sermon. After that, come the prayers. These include the Litany, the Lord’s Prayer and, sometimes, the Collect of the Day or other intercessions. Included among all this is what traditionally was always the last prayer of the service: the Collect for Peace. I’d like to invite you to open to page 251, and we’ll take a look at it.

The Collect for Peace is a very old prayer. It comes from a prayer book dating back to the fifth century. It has survived this long and is used frequently not just by us, but by the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches as well, because of its wisdom. The prayer begins, “O God, from whom come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works.” This is called the address. After the address to God the Father comes the petition, the part where we ask for something, “give to us, Your servants, that peace which the world cannot give.” (Both citations from Lutheran Service Book, pg. 251) This is the phrase that comes to mind this week, “peace which the world cannot give.” By rising from the dead, Christ won for us a peace the world cannot give – the peace of sins forgiven –  and He gives it in a different way than the world does, too.

I.

Our text this week takes place on Easter Evening, the same day that Jesus rose from the dead. The Holy Spirit tells us by St. John that, although the women were initially alarmed at the absence of Jesus, they did eventually tell the disciples what they saw – including that Mary Magdalene had seen the Lord. But, when they told this to Jesus’ disciples, it all seemed to them to be idle tales. “Foolishness,” St. Luke wrote (Lk. 24:11) Instead of joyously believing what the women told because it matched with what Jesus had said to them before, the disciples were locked away, St. John wrote. They locked themselves up for fear of the Jews. They were afraid that the wrath poured out on their master would overflow onto them. In addition, think of the shame they must have felt. They had all vowed never to fall away from Jesus. Sure, Peter denied Jesus with his words, but they all ran when the soldiers came for the Lord. Think, also, of the despair and loneliness they felt over His death.

“On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’” (Jn. 20:19, English Standard Version) Then, He showed them His hands and side. Remember how Jesus rode into Jerusalem not on a warhorse, but on a donkey? By that, He demonstrated His great humility and love for us. Here, Jesus came and stood in the midst of His cowering disciples and His first words to them weren’t, “I told you so,” but, “Peace be with you.” He didn’t speak to them a word of condemnation, a word of Law, but Gospel. “Peace be with you.” And, with this, Jesus spoke of peace the world cannot give.

That peace, which the world cannot give, is the forgiveness of sins. This is the whole reason Jesus died, the reason why He became flesh – to win for us the forgiveness of sins. When He said, “peace,” to the disciples, it’s as if He said to them, “you are forgiven.” He did what He came to do. They are forgiven. They need not fear, not fear neither sin, death, nor hell. Instead, they can be at peace. Their Lord, and our Lord, has risen from the dead. As proof, He showed them His hands and side. He is the same Jesus they saw crucified, not a ghost or other such thing. Then, having received the peace the world can’t give, St. John writes, “the disciples were glad.” (Jn. 20:20)

II.

The peace that the world can’t give, which God alone gives through Christ, is the assurance and confidence that our sins are forgiven. Every sin that we have committed – and which we have yet to commit – finds its atonement in Christ’s passion. By His wounds we are healed. By His wounds, and by His rising again, we have peace. And that’s something the world can’t give us. We have the glad confidence of the forgiveness of sins and the joyful hope of the resurrection to eternal life. And, not only does Christ give us a peace which the world cannot, He also gives it in a different way than the world gives its sort of peace.

St. John writes,

“Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

John 20:21-23

With these words Jesus instituted the Office of the Holy Ministry and entrusted to it the responsibility of speaking publicly, in His stead, the forgiveness of sins. The Apostles and our pastors today, who follow in their train, speak forth the forgiveness of Christ. When they speak within their office, such as in the Divine Service or in private confession and absolution, that our sins are forgiven and that we may depart in peace – they truly are, and we truly can. This is totally different than how the world works. In the world, if we want peace, we have to make it. Christ won us a peace the world can’t and He gives it in a way the world won’t: freely. He gives forgiveness to us freely through His Sacraments, through the Means of Grace, and He constantly reassures us by sending us pastors to speak His forgiveness in His stead.

This authority to forgive sins in the stead of Christ, what we know from the Catechism as the Office of the Keys, isn’t the sole property of the pastoral office, but it is given by Christ to His Church. Jesus teaches us this in Matthew 18, where the authority to bind and loose sins is given to the congregation as a whole. The pastor is called to speak publicly in the stead of Christ and on behalf of the congregation. In our personal lives, however, when our neighbor sins against us – or we, them – and the words of Christ’s forgiveness are spoken, in that moment sins are truly forgiven. When we forgive our Christian friend because Christ forgives us or they assure us that we are forgiven because of Christ, that is true and valid in heaven. And, that gives us peace, too. This means that God is not up in the sky looking to smite us, but looks down upon us in love and smiles upon us.

When Martin Luther preached on this text he made a good observation. He said the Lord gives us peace, not by taking away danger or sadness but by soothing our hearts, calming us and making us unafraid. This is true. By His resurrection, Christ brings us peace the world cannot give. In Him, the sins which formerly would’ve seen us eternally condemned in hell are forgiven. By Him our bodies will be raised anew and we will live in eternal joy – and that is something the world can’t give.

He is Going Before You

Text: Mark 16:1-8

Have you ever put something down and then, when you went back for it, it moved? Remote controls and keys are notorious for this. You set them down and come back, and somehow, they aren’t where you left them. It’s like whatever it was grew a set of legs and walked off. What really happened is you forgot where you put it, but it’s more fun to think of it this way. Sometimes things don’t stay where you put them. Children, for example. But you know what else didn’t stay where it was put? Jesus. 

When the women went to the tomb early that Sunday morning, they expected to find Jesus right where they left Him, dead and cold on a slab. But, instead, He wasn’t there. He didn’t have to grow legs to walk off; He already had them, and He did. Graciously, He appointed an angel to stay behind and tell the women when they got there. These are the words the angel said, “You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here…He is going before you to Galilee.” (Mk. 16:6-7, ESV) Jesus went ahead of His Disciples to Galilee, but He went ahead of all of us in death so that we might follow Him into life.

I.

That wasn’t what the women were expecting when they went to the tomb, though. There were three of them that Sunday. They were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother James, and Salome. These three were present at Jesus’ crucifixion, and likely had been looking after Him and His disciples for some time before that. They were believers in Christ, but they didn’t quite understand Him when He said that He would rise from the dead. After He gave up His spirit, Joseph of Arimathea took our Lord down from the cross, wrapped Him in a linen cloth, and placed Him in a tomb he had prepared for himself. The Marys watched this all take place. And they figured that, since things normally stay where you put them, Jesus’ body would be there when they came to anoint it.

St. Mark writes, “When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.” (Mk. 16:1-2) Their only concern as they approached our Lord’s tomb was who would roll away the stone that was placed at the entrance – it being very large. But, looking up, “they saw that the stone had been rolled back.” (v. 4) Going inside, they found it empty. What was put there was no longer there. Instead, something different – an angel. St. Mark describes a young man, “dressed in a white robe.” (v. 5) Understandably, the women were afraid. But the angel said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus…who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here.” Then, he directed them, “Go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going before you to Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you.” (v. 7)

II.

Normally, when you put something somewhere it stays there. Children are exceptions, but then they’re people. Animals don’t always stay when you tell them to, either. Bodies, however, do. Or, they’re supposed to. Not Jesus’, though. No, He rose just like He said He would. As recently as Holy Thursday, in the Garden of Gethsemane, just before He was betrayed, Jesus said, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” (Mk. 14:27-28) This is also what He preached and taught for three years all around Galilee, in Judea and Samaria. 

This is what He spoke through the prophets of old. Through Isaiah it was prophesied that the Messiah would die bearing the sins of the people yet live again. (Is. 53) King David prophesied by the Holy Spirit that God the Father would not let His holy one see the corruption of death. (Ps. 16:10) And, as far back as the Garden of Eden, the Lord promised that the offspring of Adam and Eve would crush the head of the ancient foe. What Christ foretold by His holy prophets, and what He Himself taught in His ministry – that He would bears the sins of the world, make payment for them in death, and then rise – He thus fulfilled that Sunday morning. Therefore, He went ahead of His Disciples to Galilee, so that He might see and comfort them there, and assure even Peter – who denied Him three times – that their sins were forgiven.

III.

The Disciples aren’t the only ones Jesus went ahead of, though. Listen to what St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians: 

If the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 

1 Corinthians 15:16-23

Christ didn’t just go ahead of the Disciples to Galilee, but He went ahead of them and us in death, so that we might follow Him into life.

Jesus Christ is the eternally-begotten Son of the Father. He is without beginning and without end. He willingly took upon Himself our same human flesh, and humbly submitted Himself to death, even death on a cross. By His death, our sins are atoned for and our guilt is taken away. And now, by His rising again, we will rise again. Because He lives, we shall live also. Though our flesh now is corrupted by the fall into sin, when Christ returns, He will raise our bodies in glorified fashion, and we will see with our own two eyes the Son of God. He went ahead of us into death and then back to life so that we, too, might pass with Him through death into eternal life. 

Most of the time, when you put things places, they stay there. Sometimes they don’t. Keys, remotes, children. These things grow legs and move when you’re not looking. But, so did something else: our Lord. Only, He didn’t just move – He rose from the dead, never to die again. He left that tomb empty and went ahead of the Disciples to Galilee. So, too, will we leave our graves empty at the final trumpet. Christ went ahead of us in death, so that we might follow Him into life.

No Guilt in Him

Text: Is. 53 and Jn. 18-19

The Holy Spirit spoke by the prophet Isaiah about our Lord’s death and burial, “They made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence and there was no deceit in His mouth.” (Is. 53:9, ESV) By this, the circumstances of our Lord’s death were foretold, how He would be killed beside criminals and be buried in Joseph of Arimathea’s new tomb. St. Isaiah said that these things would happen, even though Jesus had neither done any violence or ever spoken any lie. In other words, there was no sin in Him, no guilt worthy of death. This is a fact that even Pontius Pilate, Roman governor of Judea, recognized. 

On Holy Thursday, our dear Lord was betrayed into the hands of sinful men. The one who betrayed Him was one of His own disciple; He betrayed Him with a kiss. The soldiers bound our Lord and dragged Him to the household of the high priest. They placed our Jesus on trial, which was a sham. It was filled with false testimony, and those who made the lies about our Lord weren’t even in agreement among themselves. It was determined that Jesus must be put to death for His crimes. As it was unlawful for them to carry out that sentence themselves, early on Friday morning they led our Lord to Pilate.

Pilate examined Jesus and the complaints against Him. This was the conclusion the Roman came to, “I find no guilt in Him.” (Jn. 18:38) Though himself not a Christian, Pilate by his words acknowledged what the Holy Spirit said through Isaiah to be true. There was no guilt in Jesus. St. Peter wrote the same, “[Jesus] committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth.” (1 Pt. 2:22) St. John spoke likewise, saying, “In [Jesus] there is no sin.” (1 Jn. 3:5) 

The crowd was displeased at Pilate’s findings, so he wavered and had our Lord flogged. Pilate’s soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns, then they put it on Jesus’ head along with a purple robe – the color of kings. They spit on Him and hit Him.

Pilate brought Jesus out in the thorny crown and robe and testified, “See, I am bringing Him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in Him.” (Jn. 19:4) This enraged the crowd. They cried out, “Crucify Him.” One last time, Pilate responded, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for I find no guilt in Him.” (Jn. 19:6) Three times Pilate confessed that Jesus was without guilt. He did not deserve to die. He had no sin. Yet, “They made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man in His death.”

II.

After Pilate confessed that Jesus was without guilt, he handed Him over to be crucified. They made Him carry His own cross to Golgotha. There, they stripped Him naked and nailed His hands and feet to the cross. Although He had committed no crime, our Lord died a criminal’s death with criminals on either side of Him. This was an excruciating, humiliating death. It was a death He did not deserve. It was a death you deserve.

Our good and gracious Father created all things that exist. He formed our first father from the dust of the earth and breathed into him the breath of life. Our first mother, Eve, was formed by God from Adam’s side. They were created perfect. They had the ability to fear, love and trust in God above all things, but they didn’t. They doubted and disobeyed God’s Word, and subjected all creation to the corruption of sin. Beginning with Cain and Abel, all human beings are born bearing the image of Adam, the corruption of original sin. Original sin is that corruption of the flesh that resides within each of us, tempting us, driving us, enticing us to doubt and disobey God’s Word – to hate it and Him, just like our first parents. And we have. All of us.

The Lord has revealed Himself to us, He has told us what is good and right and true, and we have spit on it. What else is sinning, other than rejecting what God has said? Each time we’ve sinned, we’ve said that we know better and our wants are better than God. We’ve sinned in the past and enjoyed it. We still sin and we do enjoy it. Hear now what God says about those who sin. “The soul who sins will die.” (Ezek. 18:20) Our Lord speaks not just of temporal death for those who sin, but of an everlasting condemnation and an eternity of torment in hell. Our God’s righteous decree is that everyone who sins deserves to die. We deserve to die.

Jesus did not sin, there was no guilt in Him; He did not deserve to die. But He did – for you. Jesus took upon and in Himself your sin. All of it. Every evil thought, every malicious deed, every careless word. Jesus took it all. St. Paul says that God, “made Him to be sin,” for our sake. (2 Cor. 5:21) Jesus took upon Himself your every sin, the wrath of God stored up in heaven to be poured out on you on the Last Day, instead, was poured out on Him on the cross. By His wounds, you are healed. Amen.

The Lord’s Supper

Text: 1 Corinthians 11:23-32

St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians in the Epistle text tonight: 

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

1 Corinthians 11:23-25, English Standard Version.

These words, together with the accounts of the holy Evangelists Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are called the Words of Institution. These are the words by which our Lord Jesus Christ gave to us a new meal to be celebrated without end, the holy meal of His true body and blood.

This event, the instituting of this Supper, is the reason for our gathering tonight. Today is Holy Thursday, also known as Maundy Thursday. “Maundy” comes from the Latin translation of the Gospel text, “A new commandment I give you.” (Jn. 13:34). Holy Thursday references that this is the day our Lord was handed over into the clutches of sinful men for us, as well as, especially, the instituting of the Sacrament of the Altar. This will be our focus tonight. In the Lord’s Supper, our Savior Jesus Christ gives us His true body and blood under the bread and wine for the forgiveness of our sins.

I.

Our gracious Lord and Master knew that Thursday evening that His earthly ministry was drawing to a close and that He would soon be handed-over into death for the sins of the people. In faithful observance of the Scriptures, He desired to eat the Passover meal with His disciples one last time. This is the context of the Gospel reading tonight and the setting in which He gave us His new Supper. As they were eating, Jesus taught the disciples about what would soon happen, and what would happen after that. He was departing back to the Father, and they would be His witnesses to the world. He would send upon them the Holy Spirit to comfort them and make them bold. Still, there was one other thing Jesus would give them to strengthen and support them (and us) in the wilderness of this life.

Let us hear, again, the words of our Lord through St. Paul. 

[Our] Lord Jesus on the night when He was betrayed took bread,and when He had given thanks, He broke it, and said, “This is My body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”In the same way also He took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 

As our Lord would soon die, rise, and ascend to the Father, He desired to give us a gift by which He would remain among His faithful until He returns on the clouds. This gift is a meal by which His passion is remembered and confessed, and also by which the fruits of His cross are received. This gift we now call the Lord’s Supper. Our Lord took bread and gave it to the Disciples, saying, “This is My body.” With the cup, He said, “This is My blood.” And, so, we believe that in the Lord’s Supper we receive, as Jesus says, His true body and His true blood.

II.

This is the clearest and simplest understanding of Jesus’ Words. The Evangelists and St. Paul are all in agreement in using the literal words “This is” to convey our Lord’s teaching to us. Both our Lord and St. Paul employ figurative language in other parts of Scripture, but there is no indication from the text that creative language is used here in any way. Our Christian Book of Concord speaks about the Words of Institution in this way:

We believe, teach, and confess that the words of Christ’s testament are not to be understood in any other way than the way they read, according to the letter. So the bread does not signify Christ’s absent body and the wine His absent blood. But, because of the sacramental union, ‹the bread and wine› are truly Christ’s body and blood.

Formula of Concord, Epitome: Article VII, paragraph 7

In the Lord’s Supper we receive the true body and blood of Christ, the very same which were broken and shed for us on the cross. And, yet, we receive it in way that the bread and wine are also present. This is what St. Paul teaches earlier in 1 Corinthians, when he says, “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?” (1 Cor. 10:16) That is to say, we receive at the same time both the bread and wine and the true body and blood of Christ. We Lutherans call this the Sacramental Union. We believe that Christ, by the power of His Word, unites His true essence to the earthly elements. The substances of bread and wine are not changed, but they are united to Christ’s body and blood in such a way that we receive with our mouths His very body and His very blood beneath, under, with, and in the bread and wine.

III.

Our Lord also tells us why He gives us this precious gift. He says, “For the forgiveness of sins.” (Mt. 26:28). This, truly, is the whole point of His Incarnation, and of the Scriptures as a whole. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, the Second Person of the Trinity, in the flesh. He took upon Himself our same human flesh that so that He might bear in Himself the sin of the whole world and make the complete payment for it on the cross. By His perfect life and sacrificial death He won for us the forgiveness of sins. In the Lord’s Supper, He gives that forgiveness to us. The Lord’s Supper is, therefore, a Sacrament and Means of Grace.

Our Lord did say, “Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” (1 Cor. 11:25) He encourages us to receive this precious meal often – not as a command, but a gracious invitation to receive continually the forgiveness of sins He won for us. As long as we are in this flesh we will remain both saint and sinner. As long as we are in this flesh, we will need the forgiveness of our sins – and our Lord gives that to us here, in His Supper. Let us, therefore, respond to His invitation with joy. Tonight, we receive with the bread and wine the true body and blood of our Savior. In this sacred meal He gives us the forgiveness He purchased for us by His death on the cross. As the Catechism says, “where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.” Thanks be to God. Amen.

Fear Not, Daughter of Zion

Text: John 12:12-19

In Psalm 46 it says, “I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation…Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord.” (Ps. 46:2, 3-5, ESV) These words come from a time after the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, after the Lord’s people had been returned from their exile. They had been carried off into Babylon some seventy years earlier because of their evil deeds, but were now forgiven by the Lord and returned to their home. However, not long after returning home from Babylon, Israel’s leadership again fell into idolatry and other sorts of unbelief. This left the faithful among God’s people filled with some measure of worry. The psalmist here reminded the people not to trust in worldly leaders, but in God.

The people of Jerusalem who sang out to Jesus at the Triumphal Entry knew this. They cried out to Him not as to any earthly leader, but to their heavenly king. The words they spoke show this. “Hosanna” means, “save us now.” “Son of David,” as St. Matthew records them saying, shows that they believed Jesus to be the promised offspring of David who would sit on the throne forever and rule in equity, justice, and love. Therefore, St. John encourages us his hearers to not be afraid, for Jesus our heavenly king comes.

I.

We heard St. Matthew’s account of the Triumphal Entry back on the First Sunday in Advent. There, we focused on the humility of our Lord’s coming: how He was born of the Virgin Mary to be like us in every respect, how He rode into Jerusalem not on a warhorse but on a donkey, and to die, even; we talked about how He comes to us today in humble Word and Sacrament. Today, I’d like for us to mediate a moment on what the Holy Spirit teaches us through St. John in verse 16. He says, about the Triumphal Entry, “His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about Him and had been done to Him.” (Jn. 12:16) St. John wrote this earlier, too, when Jesus said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (Jn. 2:19) The disciples didn’t understand until after the Resurrection that Jesus was talking about the temple of His body – which He did raise after three days.

The Disciples remembered after the Resurrection that all the things written in the Old Testament about the Messiah were about Jesus. What sort of things might those be? Let’s start with the passage St. John cites from the prophet Zechariah. It says, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” (Jn. 12:15) That passage speaks of the Lord’s judgement against the enemies of His people and the eternal salvation He will grant to His children through a king yet to come. This king would be righteous and humble, mounted on a donkey. Sounds like our Lord. He rode into Jerusalem to bring His people salvation by His death on the cross. This is what the prophet Isaiah said, “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows…He was pierced for our transgressions…and with His wounds we are healed.” (Is. 53:4-5) Last Sunday we heard about the sacrifice of Isaac. Jesus rode into Jerusalem to be the true lamb of God, provided as the sacrifice for sin in our place.

II.

Just as Jesus rode into Jerusalem to do and suffer what was written of Him in the Old Testament, the people cried out after Him using Old Testament words. They cried out to Jesus, “Hosanna,” which means “save us,” and comes from our Psalm today. But, from what did the people need saving? Well, a lot, probably. Their land was occupied by a foreign and Godless nation. Their leaders, including in the church, were often corrupt. Then, there were the daily hardships of life common to all. But, I think there is a particular reason they cried out to Jesus. St. John wrote in verse 18, “The reason why the crowd went out to meet [Jesus] was that they heard He had done this sign” – that He had raised Lazarus from the dead. The people were crying out to Jesus to save them from death, from sin.

That’s something we need, too; and we feel it. This Lent we’ve gone through the Ten Commandments. The Commandments are God’s holy and righteous will. They are the supreme measure of what’s right and wrong when it comes to our thoughts and actions. And, if we rightly consider them in our lives, then we realize how greatly we have transgressed them. The Scriptures clearly teach what the penalty for breaking a Commandment is: death. Now, multiply that by however many times we have sinned and we’ll realize what sort of a position we are in. Not a good one. And, it’s not one that any earthly ruler or power will ever get us out of. Because we are sinners we will all eventually die, and if our sins are left unforgiven, after death we enter eternal condemnation in hell. Therefore, we have good reason to cry out the same word as the people at Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, “Hosanna.”

III.

The Holy Spirit does a masterful job in this text by having St. John cite from Zechariah. Take a second and look at the first line of verse 15. “Fear not, daughter of Zion.” “Fear not.” These words were addressed to God’s people of old just as they are to us today. There’s not one of us that isn’t concerned about the way the world is going, or to some extent about our health, our work, or our children’s future. Beyond these things, what should really give us pause is our sinfulness and the need for salvation. But, do you know what the Holy Spirit says about that today? “Fear not.” Why? “Behold, your king is coming.”

These words were written about Jesus. They were written about His humble entrance into Jerusalem, where He would humbly submit Himself unto death for you. Jesus died, as we heard in Hebrews last week, to be the one eternal sacrifice for all our sins, so that we might be redeemed and set free from our sin and fears. This is our confidence, our hope, and our faith as we enter now our Lord’s Holy Week. This is the week that He submitted Himself to the wrath of God against sin so that, in Him, we might have no fear.

This was the encouragement of the Psalmist we heard before: that we not put our trust in earthly princes who cannot truly save us. Instead, let our hosannas be sung to Christ, who comes as our humble heavenly king to save. He is the one the prophets sang and spoke of, who saves us from all our sins and from eternal death. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Amen.

Serious Law and Gospel

Text: The Close of the Commandments

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Psalm 1, English Standard Version.

Psalm 1 is an anonymous psalm, though it could be by David. In either case, it was likely written well after the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai. It speaks of the blessings that come to the one devoted to God’s Word and the curse that remains on those who hate it. In this, it could almost work as its own sermon on the Close of the Commandments.

What we know from the Catechism as the close or conclusion to the Commandments, in Scripture, is attached to the First Commandment. We would understand it correctly, though, if we understand that this Word of God stands true for each Commandment. The Lord is serious about the words He speaks to us; He will zealously punish those who hate Him and break His Law, but He will be even more gracious to those who love Him and seek to do His will.

I.

Let’s read the Close of the Commandments together. 

What does God say about all these commandments? He says: “I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.” 

What does this mean? God threatens to punish all who break these commandments. Therefore, we should fear His wrath and not do anything against them. But He promises grace and every blessing to all who keep these commandments. Therefore, we should also love and trust in Him and gladly do what He commands.

I think that Luther, in the text we just read, provides the simplest explanation for this passage. Our God is a jealous God. He Himself speaks this way, as we heard. But, when God says that He is a jealous God, He doesn’t mean it in the way we get jealous. When we think of that word we think of a sinful desire toward something or someone. There is a jealously, though, that can be a proper thing to have: What about the desire of a husband for the love and attention of his wife? Would we say that is a wrong desire to have? Say, if a husband refuses to share the love of his wife with anyone else? This is the type of jealous our God is. He is jealous for the love and affection of His bride, the Church. His glory He will not share with idols, nor the love that exists between Him and His people.

Jesus once said, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” (Mt. 19:6) Here, He was speaking about earthly marriage between a husband and wife, but it stands true, also, for the marriage between Christ and His bride. Sin – the breaking of the Commandments in thought, word, or deed – drives a wedge between husband and bride. This, our God will not abide. He commands us which things are good and right and true, and He will not abide deviations. To disobey His commands and disregard His Law is to be unfaithful to our heavenly bridegroom. To persist in sin is to hate God. And, to those who hate God, He reacts in kind. He allows them to remain in their sinful hatred and receive the punishment for their sins. If the children hate God like their parents, the judgment continues upon them. Our God is a jealous God, and He is serious when He says He will punish those who break His Commandments.

II.

However, as eager as God is for us, His bride, and as seriously He will punish those who drive a wedge between us – so much more will He show His grace and mercy to those who love Him. Our God is not just a jealous God who punishes, but one who also blesses beyond what we can ever expect or imagine. He does not delight in punishing, but in showing steadfast love to those who fear Him. He shows that love to us. He showed it to us by sending us His Word of truth. He showed it to us by the sacrifice of His Son. He shows it to us now by forgiving us our sins.

The Law was not given so that, by it, we might earn our way to heaven. Instead, it was given so that we might learn our need for forgiveness. It was given so that we might be brought to confess our sins and look to Christ. Those who look to Him in faith are not put to shame. Instead, for as many sins as we have committed there is twice the forgiveness. That’s what the Lord said back in Advent. Remember: “Comfort, comfort My people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.” (Is. 40:1-2) Now, our God doesn’t punish double; He forgives double. Such forgiveness, we have received.

It is true that our God punishes the sins of those who hate Him, who impenitently persist in their sin until death. But His delight is in showing mercy. To those who repent and trust in Christ – the Lord’s love, mercy, grace, and blessings know no bound. Such do we receive. How then do we respond to this love? In thankful obedience to our Lord’s commands. For those who trust in Christ, these Commandments are not a burden, but good instructions for how we are to love God and our neighbor, and we want to do them. True, they do continue to show us our sin and we will not keep them perfectly while we are in this flesh; But we learn from them to look to Christ and, as God says, He shows His steadfast love to a thousand generations of those who love Him.

Let us pray:

Holy and merciful God, You have taught us what You would have us do and not do. Pour out Your Holy Spirit on us so that He may bear fruit in our lives and that, remembering Your mercies and Your laws, we may grow in obedience to Your will and in love for You and our neighbor. Help us to follow the example of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, in whose name we pray. Amen.

You Shall Not Covet

Text: Ninth and Tenth Commandments

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” This was King David’s fervent prayer to God, after the prophet Nathan made known to him his sin. David had taken another man’s wife to be his own and, moreover, had the man killed by the hand of an enemy nation. David sought to cover-up his sin, to make everything appear right – he only took Bathsheba into his home after Uriah died. But, on the inside, there was a deep, festering, corruption. Nathan was sent by the Lord to preach to David. He said to him, “You are the man.” David was struck by the hammer of God’s Law and realized the depth of his sin. His sin in the matter was not just his evil actions, but his evil heart that gave birth to those evil actions. 

David knew the Commandments very well, and he knew that what the Lord demands in the Commandments is not just an outward righteousness, but an inward righteousness as well – a righteousness of heart – and he failed on both accounts. Therefore, he turned to the Lord. He confessed his sins unto the Lord, and the Lord forgave him his sin. Today we are meditating on the Ninth and Tenth Commandments. In these, God shows us that He demands inner and not just outward perfection. Therefore, we flee to Christ whose death redeems us from our sin. 

I.

Let’s go ahead and read these Commandments together. 

You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not scheme to get our neighbor’s inheritance or house, or get it in a way which only appears right, but help and be of service to him in keeping it. 

You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not entice or force away our neighbor’s wife, workers, or animals, or turn them against him, but urge them to stay and do their duty.

Martin Luther’s Small Catechism

In some ways, these Commandments speak to things that we’ve already covered in earlier Commandments. In the Fifth Commandment, we are taught not to harm our neighbor but help and provide for him in his bodily needs. Therefore, we shouldn’t deprive him of his home or possessions. In the Sixth Commandment we are taught to live pure and decent lives, therefore we should not seek to draw away our neighbor’s spouse. The Seventh Commandment, of course, is to not steal; the Eighth, to not lie. The Ninth and Tenth Commandments speak to topics we’ve already covered, but they do it in such a way as to fill in the gaps.

These Commandments, in short, condemn any attempt to take what belongs to our neighbor and make it ours. This includes all scheming and plotting. It includes using loopholes to get around situations. Even if we get what belongs to our neighbor in a totally legal fashion, such as through court proceedings and contracts, it may still fall under these Commandments. What God gives to our neighbor is not our business. Our neighbor may sell us what is his, he may give it to us or share it with us; these are God-pleasing ways. These Commandments prohibit us from scheming, plotting, and planning to take what God has given to someone else and make it ours – be it his house, possessions, income, or relationships.

II.

That is the plain meaning of these last Commandments, but there is something else to be said, and that is: what does it mean to covet? The back of the Catechism defines it this way, “Coveting is the sinful desire in our hearts to acquire for ourselves anything that belongs to our neighbor.” In other words, coveting is something that happens in the heart. It’s when we, in our hearts, have sinful desires to take what belongs to someone else. That desire in the heart, even if it isn’t fully acted on, is still sin. That’s why David prayed for a clean heart, and not a sinful one that gives birth to more and more sin. Remember what Jesus once said:

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…For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.

Matthew 7:15, 21-22

Let’s use David as an example. He was walking on the roof of the palace, and he saw a woman bathing in an adjacent building. He did not avert his eyes; he lusted. Then, he asked around who the woman was, and his people told him that she was a married woman. (David, also, was a married man.) Here, is where David coveted. He desired what God gave to his neighbor Uriah. We know happened next. In the Commandments, God demands that not only our actions be righteous, but our desires as well. Even if we think that we can somehow skate through the other Commandments, these ones will trip us up. We all have in ourselves, by nature, a deep-seated discontent. We are never truly happy with what God gives; we always want more, and we dislike when others have more or “better” things than us. And that is sinful.

III.

The function of these last two Commandments is to keep us from scheming to get our neighbor’s things or people, and also to turn us back around to the First Commandment. God commands that we are to fear, love, and trust in Him above all things. We shouldn’t seek to get what belongs to our neighbor or to hurt him in any way, we shouldn’t even think about. But the fact that we have had harmful thoughts, that we have had lustful thoughts, that we have been lazy and disobedient in our lives, shows that deep down – with David – we have unclean hearts.

So, what do we do? What did David do? In the Epistle it says that Christ appeared once for all into the holy places to secure an eternal redemption by the shedding of His own blood. It is says that the shedding of His holy, innocent, and precious blood is able to purify us from our dead works, our sins. David knew this. He sang in Psalm 32,

I acknowledged my sin to You, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to You at a time when You may be found…Blessed is the one…whose sin is covered.

Let us learn from David and, like him, confess our sins and look to Christ for forgiveness. His death covers our sins and His blood cleanses our unrighteousness.

We pray:

Heavenly Father, You open Your hand and satisfy the desires of every living creature. Cause us to fear and love You above all things, that our hearts would not covet that which You have given to our neighbors. Rather, lead us to trust in Your provision of daily bread, be content with what You provide, and reject every evil scheme or enticement that would secure for ourselves that which You have given to others. Enable us to serve our neighbors by helping them keep and guard all that You have given to them; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. 

To Build Up, Not Tear Down

Text: Eighth Commandment

St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, in chapter 4, about the new life they had received in Christ. Their new life – to which they were called by Baptism and faith – was different than the life they previously lived, including how they used to relate to their neighbor. St. Paul said, 

Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another…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. 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…Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Ephesians 4:25-32

St. Paul encouraged the Ephesians in their walk together by teaching them to practice the Commandments in their daily lives, including the Eighth Commandment. In the Eighth Commandment, our God teaches us to use our tongues for speaking truth and to build up, and not for lying or tearing down.

I.

We’ve spoken already about some ways that God would have us behave toward our neighbor. In the Fourth Commandment, we are taught to honor those whom God places above us in station: our parents, teachers, worldly authorities, pastors. In the Fifth Commandment, God began teaching us to be respectful of what belongs to our neighbor, starting with his body. We are not to hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, but help and support him. In the Sixth Commandment, we are not to lust after our neighbor’s spouse. On Sunday, we heard the Seventh Commandment, where God taught us to be respectful of our neighbor’s money and possessions by not stealing them and by helping him to improve and protect what is his. There is one more thing that belongs to our neighbor that God would have us respect: his or her reputation.

The Holy Spirit spoke by King Solomon, saying, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.” He also says, “A good name is better than precious ointment.” It is a blessing of God to have a good name and reputation, to have the trust of other people. It is important for one to be able to stand in integrity before their family and the world. One’s integrity, in some ways, is far more precious than any earthly jewel. Therefore, God would have us protect our neighbor’s reputation by defending him, speaking well of him, and explaining everything in the kindest way. The Eighth Commandment strikes against everything contrary to these things.

II.

Let’s go ahead and read the Commandment together.

You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.

Martin Luther’s Small Catechism

The first and literal meaning of the Commandment is, as it says, to not give false testimony. This a term that is used to refer to the fact that, sometimes, what happens in a court room is not done in all fairness. In this fallen world there are such things as wicked judges, witnesses who take bribes, and litigious parties that do nothing but destroy a man and his reputation. God would not have us, His children, be any of these things.

Neither should we speak in any way that causes harm to our neighbor. This includes outright lying – whether in court or in life. It includes betraying our neighbor’s secrets, which were spoken to us in confidence. This Commandment speaks against all slander and gossip, rushes to judgment, and the entertaining of harmful rumors. In short, anything that tears down our neighbor’s reputation is forbidden by God in this Commandment. There are exceptions to this Commandment, such as when a judge announces a verdict that may cause someone to fall in the public eye. A pastor, likewise, may be called upon to speak against a false teacher. Both of these are done within an office entrusted by God – and not according to their person.

III.

Instead of tearing down our neighbor or harming his reputation in any way, God would have us build our neighbor up. When others speak poorly of our neighbor, we should come to his defense and speak well of him. We should do our best to draw attention to our neighbor’s good qualities, and not their faults. St. Peter said, “Love covers a multitude of sins.” In general, we should also assume the best of our neighbor and explain all his or her actions in the most positive and kindest way possible.

Now, none of this means that we are to ignore our neighbor’s sins. But, it does mean, when our neighbor’s sin becomes known to us, we have two options. The first is to keep it to ourselves. Knowing about our neighbor’s sins and speaking them are two entirely different things. The second option for when our neighbor’s sin is known to us is – when it is within our place – to go and speak to them privately. This is what our Lord said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.” By following our Lord’s instructions, we protect our neighbor’s reputation while also caring for his soul.

And that, in short, is the meaning of this Commandment. In addition to our protecting our neighbor’s body, his/her spouse, and their possessions, God would also have us defend our neighbor’s reputation. We do this by not lying, slandering, or gossiping, but by speaking well of our neighbor and explaining everything in the kindest way. In this way, we follow St. Paul’s encouragement to the Ephesians, that we use our words to build up and not tear down.

Let us pray.

Guard our lips, O Lord, and govern our unruly tongues so that our words about our neighbors are not tainted with falsehood, betrayal, or slander, which would damage their reputation. Instead, give us the wisdom to speak well of our neighbors, defend them, and explain their circumstances and actions in the kindest way; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

The Lord Provides

Text: Seventh Commandment

Our Lord teaches us in the Sermon on the Mount about being anxious over our earthly well-being. He says,

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Matthew 6:25-26

Here, Jesus reminds us of what we learn in the First Article of the Apostles’ Creed: that God our heavenly Father knows what we need and provides for us. This idea comes up in the Lord’s Prayer, too, when we pray for our daily bread. And, of course, this idea is also brought up by the First Commandment. 

Since we believe that God has promised to provide all that we need, and does, it should be reflected in how we relate to our neighbor – specifically, in how we relate to what belongs to our neighbor. In the Seventh Commandment, God teaches us not to steal. Since all that we need is provided by our gracious Lord, He would have us be of help and support to our neighbor in protecting and improving what is his.

I.

Let’s stop and ruminate on this idea for a bit, though. In the First Article of the Apostles’ Creed, we say, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.” The Christian faith is that God our Father is the Creator of all that exists. All things that were made, whether visible or invisible, find their source in Him. But, when we say that God is the Maker of all things, we also include the fact that God upholds and preserves creation, as well. For example, it says in the Psalms, “He covers the heavens with clouds; He prepares rain for the earth…He gives to the beasts their food, and to the young ravens that cry.” It also says, “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.”

Our God is gracious and kind, He lovingly provides and cares for all creation, including us. He gives us life, and continues to provide for the needs of our bodies until such time as He takes us to Himself. As we learned in the Fourth Commandment, He provides for us through our parents and others who care for us, through worldly government, and though our employers. He also provides for all people by causing the earth to be fruitful. He even provides for the needs of the birds of the air, and we’re worth much more than them. Our God is the creator and preserver of all life, even ours, and He does provide for all that we truly need. Therefore, in some ways, the Seventh Commandment is an application of the First Commandment. We should love and trust God and, therefore, not steal.

II.

Let’s go ahead and read the Seventh Commandment together.

You shall not steal. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not take our neighbor’s money or possessions, or get them in any dishonest way, but help him to improve and protect his possessions and income.

Martin Luther’s Small Catechism

I think that’s right, that the Seventh Commandment builds on the First. If we trusted God to provide, then we wouldn’t steal. But, that’s assuming people steal only what they need. We know that’s not true. Instead, people steal because their sinful nature leads them to believe that what they want is more important than what God provides. Therefore, God says to us here, do not steal.

This means, first, to not steal – in the literal sense. God would not have His beloved children be thieves. St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “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.” This Commandment teaches that we should not steal anything that belongs to our neighbor. Neither should we get anything in any dishonest way. All fraud and misleading practices should be put far away from us. If we have products that we sell, we may sell them at whatever prices we see fit, but we should never cheat someone or falsely take advantage of them. Martin Luther said in the Large Catechism that the poor man cries out to God against those who take advantage of him, and God hears that cry.

A final application of the Seventh Commandment our students know. It is also considered stealing when we, as employees, are lazy or sloppy with our time. If we are being compensated for our work, let us work. Let us be diligent in our labor, using the skills that God has given us to the best of our ability. This is maybe a hidden form of stealing, but it is against the Commandment to falsely accept payment for work not done. Instead of getting money or possessions in any sort of dishonest way. God teaches us in this Commandment to trust in Him and be of service to our neighbor.

III.

We observe this Commandment rightly when we help our neighbor protect and improve what is his, particularly in possessions and income. This could include a number of things. It could be as simple as driving someone to work when they are in need. It could be lending tools; money, even. Jesus said, “Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.” An application of this Commandment could also be writing a good letter of reference for somebody. It could be helping them rebuild after a disaster.

We also learn from this Commandment when we are good stewards of what God does give us. We should receive everything we have with thanksgiving, knowing that it is a blessing and gift from God. What He gives us, whether in the form of food or drink or clothing or home or job, should be used for the support of those around us, particularly our family. We should use what God gives us to help and support the neighbors closest to us: our spouses and our children. We should also be generous, always ready to give to the poor and to the Church, in support of its ministers, works of mercy, and the spread of the Gospel of Christ.

Jesus teaches us to not worry or be anxious because our heavenly Father knows what we need and will provide. Therefore, neither should we steal. Stealing shows a lack of faith and trust in God. Yet, our God is merciful. If we are honest, there have been times where we’ve stolen, been tempted to, or have been lazy at work. “But if we confess our sins…” Thanks be to God.

Let us pray:

Lord God, giver of every good and perfect gift, teach us to rejoice in the bounty of Your gifts given to our neighbors and curb our appetite to claim for ourselves by theft or dishonesty the money or possessions You have bestowed on them. Instead, give us cheerful hearts and willing hands to help our neighbors improve and protect their livelihood; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.