Rotten on the Inside by Pastor Klusmeyer

Rotten on the Inside

A few years ago, I was cutting down a large oak tree near my parent's house. From the outside, this tree looked perfectly healthy. I went through my normal cutting procedure: I made my notch on the side I wanted the tree to fall. However, as I started making my cut to drop the tree in a controlled fashion the tree suddenly and unexpectedly began to topple. What I didn’t know when I started cutting this tree was that even though it looked healthy on the outside, it was rotten on the inside. We know how true this can be in our lives. Things can look good and wonderful from the outside, but they are rotten on the inside. Appearances can be deceiving. Think of examples where from the outside it seems that someone is living an upright and virtuous life, but in reality, they’re concealing a host of sins: a police officer who’s convicted of falsifying evidence or a pastor who’s caught embezzling from the church.

When we hear about situations like this we are greatly offended. We instinctively dislike people who claim to be one thing but are really something else. This is one of the reasons that we dislike the Pharisees so much. They appeared to be pure and holy from the outside, but they were rotten on the inside. The Pharisees serve as a powerful warning of how easy it is for Christians to become inwardly focused. Instead of completely relying on Christ, we foolishly think we can add to our salvation. We quickly forget that all our good works are tainted by sin. We can do nothing to contribute to our salvation. We must be reminded daily that we are not good people; we are sinners. And it is only because of our God’s great love and mercy that we have been washed and purified in the blood of our Savior.

Our Gospel lesson begins with some of the scribes and Pharisees making the journey to Galilee to confront Jesus. As they were watching his disciples, the Pharisees noticed that the disciples were not washing their hands before eating. Now to a modern reader washing your hands seems like something perfectly good and reasonable. It’s good to wash your hands before eating to remove germs and dirt. But this isn’t the kind of hand washing that Pharisees were obsessed with. In the laws that God had given to Israel through Moses, he had declared that many things could make a person ceremonially unclean. Over the centuries the religious leaders of Israel had added to God’s law. They thought that keeping God’s law was good, but if they could keep all these additional requirements that would be even better. They foolishly thought that slavish obedience to these manmade traditions could earn them salvation and they harshly judged anyone who failed to live up to their standards of purity and holiness.

Jesus knew the hearts of the Pharisees. He understood that even though they looked pure and clean on the outside they were rotten on the inside. They did not believe they needed God to get into heaven because they could earn salvation on their own. They were skilled at following the outward requirements of God’s law, but their hearts were not in it. They kept God’s law to show how they were better than others and purer than everyone else. This is why Jesus says, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites. As it is written: These people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. They worship me in vain, teaching human rules as if they were doctrines.” Jesus further explains to the crowd the error of the Pharisees. They did not understand that the purpose of God’s law is to show us our sins, not give us a blueprint for earning heaven. The law exposes the evil inside of us and reminds us how filthy our sins make us in the eyes of God. Jesus said, “What comes out of a man, that is what makes a man unclean. In fact, from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual sins, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained immorality, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and make a person unclean.”

As Christians, we understand this. We know our sins and our desperate need for a Savior. However, we also know that Satan is constantly seeking to undermine the message of the Gospel. It is very easy for us to fall into the same trap as the Pharisees. We like to think that we are better than we are. We don’t like facing the hard truth that we are by nature rotten on the inside. As we compare ourselves to the list of sins that Jesus talks about, we realize that we are guilty. We have failed to keep God’s law perfectly. And yet what do we so often do? We make excuses to try and justify ourselves. We blame others for the sins that we have committed. Or we draw comparisons between ourselves and others. We are willing to admit that we are a little rotten, but others

are far worse. We foolishly think that God will compare us with others instead of judging us for our own sins. This makes a mockery of how serious all sins including our sins are in the eyes of God.

Or maybe we have the opposite problem. Our sins are always on our minds. We carry around our guilt and shame every day. We want God to see how very sorry we are because we think that this will make God love us more. We think that carrying our burden of guilt will somehow make up for the evil that we have done. Or when we manage to keep from sinning, we want God to see what a good job we have done. But what are these things? They are simply other forms of works of righteousness. When we carry around that burden of guilt, we are making a mockery of the cross. We are saying that Jesus didn’t do everything on the cross and that we need to do something extra to ensure our forgiveness. This is the same trap the Pharisees fell into.

Dear friends, we can do absolutely nothing to add to our salvation because even our best good works are tainted by sin. We can do nothing to make ourselves clean. But this is the amazing message of the Gospel. We do not need to make ourselves clean because we have been washed and purified through the waters of baptism. Through baptism, we are connected to the death and resurrection of Christ. On the cross, our perfect and holy Savior took all our sin and guilt on himself. He offered his perfect life as a sacrifice to make full and complete payment for all our sins. We have been washed and purified by the blood of the Lamb. Through the waters of baptism, we have been made a new creation that is no longer rotten on the inside, but pure and holy. This amazing gift of forgiveness is ours by faith, not by works.

The Apostle Paul illustrates this great truth in Romans 3 where he writes, “But now a righteousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.”

We have been declared not guilty in the eyes of God. We have been washed and purified by the blood of Christ. We no longer need to carry around a burden of guilt and shame because every sin we have ever or will ever commit has been paid for by the death of Christ. We don’t need to fear the wrath of God because Christ was punished in our place. We have been freed from the burdens of God’s law. We do not need to keep God’s law to be saved which is why Paul says, “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”

If we have been freed from the requirements of the law, why do we still talk about the 10 Commandments? Why does Jesus still encourage us to do good works and live according to God’s holy law? We do this because this is what our God desires. We have been reborn through the waters of baptism to live in service to our God. We are grateful for the many blessings that he has given us and so we want to live according to his will. God’s law serves as a guide for our lives. We see and know his will and desire to live according to it. We do good works because they are good and pleasing to our Father in heaven. We love our neighbor, and we flee from impurity because this is what we have been called to do. Our identity is in Christ Jesus, so we no longer conform to the patterns of this world, but instead live as God has called us to live.

From the outside, the Pharisees looked good, but they we rotten on the inside. By nature, we too are rotten on the inside. But through faith in Christ, we have been reborn. We are no longer unclean, but clean. We have not cleaned ourselves, but instead, we have been made clean by the blood of Christ. We don’t need to worry about doing good works or carrying around a burden of guilt for our sins because our salvation was won on the cross of Christ. We have been freed to live our lives in service to God in thankfulness for all that he has done for us.

Walking or Remaining? by Pastor Zarling

Walking or Remaining?

John 6:51-69 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” 52At that, the Jews argued among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53So Jesus said to them, “Amen, Amen, I tell you: Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in yourselves. 54The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the Last Day. 55For my flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink. 56The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. 57Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like your fathers ate and died. The one who eats this bread will live forever.”

59He said these things while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. 60When they heard it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching! Who can listen to it?” 61But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, asked them, “Does this cause you to stumble in your faith? 62What if you would see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 63The Spirit is the one who gives life. The flesh does not help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. 64But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning those who would not believe and the one who would betray him. 65He said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me, unless it is given to him by my Father.” 66After this, many of his disciples turned back and were not walking with him anymore. 67So Jesus asked the Twelve, “You do not want to leave too, do you?” 68Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

“Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God” (John 6:68-69). Amen.

The teenager was a little aloof. He kept people at arm’s length – especially after the fire.

The teen’s neighbor was shooting off fireworks on the Fourth of July, when one of the fireworks landed on the roof of the teen’s house. The house caught on fire and became unlivable.

Thankfully, insurance allowed the family to buy a different home in a different town. But the teen – who already had difficulty making friends – now lost all his childhood friends, his neighborhood, and his church in the move.

The pastor in his new church invited the teen to become involved in their church youth group. Things went well for a while. The teen was beginning to connect with other teens and was making new friends. Until the youth group had a bonfire. The teen became agitated. None of the other youth knew what the problem was. Even though they tried to help, nothing worked. From that moment, the teen and his family little by little pulled away from the youth group and the church and began walking away from Jesus.

Sadly, this is nothing new. There are many Christians who are on the fringe and can easily walk away. Perhaps you know someone who has walked away from Christ and his church. Or maybe you are that person who had walked away for a while … but by God’s grace he has

brought you back to walking with Jesus. Or perhaps you could walk away in the future when something or someone offends you.

You may have noticed that worship attendance in churches is down. Since 2020 faithful church members became less faithful in their worship attendance. Less faithful attendees became even less faithful. Those on the fringe disappeared. The walked away from Christ and his church. They are gone.

Jesus knows this walking away will happen. It happened to him. After Jesus fed the five thousand, the people wanted more bread from Jesus. So, Jesus used this desire for bread to teach how he is the Bread of Life. Anyone who eats of him will live eternally. Jesus taught, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever” (John 6:51).

The people understood that Jesus was not really teaching cannibalism when he talked about eating his flesh and drinking his blood. Jesus taught, “The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the Last Day. For my flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink. The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him” (John 6:54-56). The people knew that eating Jesus as the Bread of Life equated to believing in him.

Flesh and blood go together. This is a way of describing the whole human being. Jesus is referring to accepting his human person as the person of the Messiah. With all this talk of being the Bread of Life, eating his flesh and drinking his blood to receive eternal life, Jesus is making a claim on people’s lives as their Lord.

And that’s where they had their problem. Many of these people are part of Jesus’ larger group of disciples. These disciples were willing to go to school and be students of their rabbi. But they stopped following Jesus when he claimed to be more than a rabbi and be their Lord.

John writes, “When they heard it, many of his disciples said, ‘This is a hard teaching! Who can listen to it’” (John 6:60)? This teaching was offensive to them. Like your teenagers with their geometry, they grumbled, “This is too hard!”

Like a teacher who can see everything going on in his classroom, Jesus can see his students grumbling with each other in the Capernaum synagogue. Jesus asks them, “Does this cause you to stumble in your faith” (John 6:61)? The Greek for “stumble” is our English word “scandal.” This teaching tripped them up. They stumbled over it. They were trapped by it. This teaching of Jesus as the crucified Christ and also the Lord of life is the dividing line for all humanity. We either believe it or reject it. Follow or walk away. Let Jesus be Lord or make ourselves little lords.

People still walk away from Jesus. People can be upset about the style of worship, the time of worship, and even the temperature of worship. In 20 years as pastor in Racine, I’ve had as many conversations about certain doctrines of the Bible as I’ve had about the thermostat.

Sadly, there is always something that we sinners will find to become upset with in the church, the pastor, or the people. We use that something as an excuse to grumble, become offended, and

walk away from Christ and his church. Whatever it is, we feel that others aren’t listening to us. We desire to be little lords.

Satan will use any excuse to tempt us to walk away as soon as our church is not scratching the itch we feel.

The itch we feel ultimately is that we don’t want to accept Jesus as Lord. We can become upset with him when we are enduring an illness or struggling in this economy or grieving a family member’s death or really anything else where we feel like Jesus should be listening to us. We can also become offended by one of Jesus’ hard teachings like the roles of men and women or the doctrine of fellowship or the necessity of forgiving even our enemies. We grumble and walk away because we want to be little lords. We don’t want to accept Jesus as Lord. Because as Lord, he is going to make a claim on our lives.

Jesus knows his larger group of disciples are grumbling as he concludes this discourse on the Bread of Life. He finishes his sermon with this point: “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. But there are some of you who do not believe” (John 6:63-64). John comments, “Jesus knew from the beginning those who would not believe and the one who would betray him” (John 6:64).

John adds, “After this, many of his disciples turned back and were not walking with him anymore” (John 6:66). Jesus knows many of his disciples will stop believing and walk away from him. He knows Judas will betray him. So, what does Jesus do? Well, I’ll tell you what he does not do. He doesn’t soften his message. He doesn’t make his teachings less hard. He doesn’t give the people what they want to hear. He gives them what they need to hear. He doesn’t feed their sinful nature’s sweet tooth. He wishes to feed their spiritual soul with the Bread of Life.

Jesus keeps preaching. He keeps teaching. This is where we see our Savior’s love. He knows many of these disciples will walk away … but he keeps preaching. He knows Judas will betray him … but he keeps calling him to repentance for the whole next year.

Jesus knows many of us will become offended, upset, on the fringe at some time in our lives. There will be some excuse we will use to walk away from Christ and his church. What does Jesus do to keep you here and connected to him? Here is Jesus’ great love for you. Jesus keeps doing the same thing he did to bring you here and bring you to faith. He keeps feeding you the Bread of Life.

The Bread of Life you hear and believe in the Scripture readings, sermon, and hymns.

The Water of Life you received and remember in your Baptism.

The flesh and blood of Jesus for you to eat and to drink in the Sacrament of the Altar for forgiveness now and eternal life later.

Jesus descended from heaven to earth to be laid in a manger. He walked and taught during his ministry. He was raised up on the cross and laid in the tomb. He rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. He did all this so those who believe in him can rise from the dead and ascend to be with him in eternal life.

Jesus challenged the remaining twelve disciples, “You do not want to leave too, do you” (John 6:67)? Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God” (John 6:68-69).

I pray that you respond to Jesus by remaining with him. Where else are you going to go? Jesus alone has the words of eternal life.

Respond like the Old Testament Israelites did to Joshua’s challenge. Joshua asked the Israelites at Shechem, “Choose for yourselves today whomever you will serve—whether the gods that your fathers served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household—we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15)! The people responded, “We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God” (Joshua 24:18)!

Dads, you are the head of the household. You take the lead and, Lord willing, your children will follow. You cannot lead only by talking. You must also lead by doing. Present a good example. Let your children see you casting away the idols of the world and serving the Lord in all faithfulness. Joshua was the leader, hoping that Israel would follow his lead.

Mothers, you are following your husband with your children. Allow him to lead. Nurture your children in their faith. They see dad leading. They see you trusting his leadership. They are going with you following where their father is going.

I pray all of you respond and remain with the Lord. Even if you must stand in a small group, that’s OK. You are standing in good company with Joshua, the Israelites, and the Twelve.

There will be times we will end up on the fringe. Or times when other Christian we know are on the fringe. We are all in danger of being offended and walking away from Christ and his church. The devil will tempt us with the false gods of our culture and the sugary sweet tastes of our world. Like God’s Old Testament disciples of the Israelites and Jesus’ New Testament disciples of the Twelve, you have a choice to make. Will you be offended, grumble, and walk away to be your own little lords? Or will you continue to follow Jesus as Lord and remain? Amen.

“But as for me and my household—we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15)! Amen.

Drawn to Christ by Pastor Klusmeyer

Drawn to Christ

What is the hungriest you have ever been? Maybe you’ve had to miss a meal or two because of a busy schedule. I once had to go four days without eating because of a medical issue. During that time, I couldn’t stop thinking about food. In our current age, we are blessed with an abundance of food. We can go to the grocery store and buy pretty much anything we want to eat. We can even pick up our phones and have food delivered right to our doors. Imagine not having that blessing. Imagine living in a world where you don’t know where your next meal will come from. Imagine that a change in the weather can mean that your family is going to starve. Imagine how important the idea of bread becomes to those who are starving.

The people who saw and heard about Jesus performing the miraculous miracle of multiplying bread wanted him to continue providing bread for them. They understood physical hunger. They saw Jesus as a never-ending food supply, but he wanted to give them something better. He wanted to give them himself; the Bread of Life which would give them eternal life. We too understand physical hunger, but we don’t always understand spiritual hunger. By nature, we want to satisfy our spiritual needs on our own by earning our way into God’s favor. As Paul tells us in our reading from 1 Corinthians the truths of the Spirit are foolishness to human reason. It is only by faith when we have been drawn to Christ by the Father that we can understand the truths of salvation.

The message of salvation simply does not make sense to our limited human reason; instead, it offends our reason. When the crowd heard Jesus say that he is the Bread that comes down from heaven they began to grumble against him. Their reason could not accept what he was saying. First, they could not accept that this man they knew from Nazareth was claiming to be from heaven. They asked, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? So how can he say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” And secondly, they could not understand how this same man was claiming to be God. When Moses was at the burning bush, he asked God what name he should use to refer to the God who sent him to the Israelites. God responded that his name was I AM. When the people in the crowd heard Jesus say, “I am the Bread of Life that came down from heaven,” they knew that he was claiming to be God. They simply could not accept that this man standing in front of them was God.

The world struggles with this truth as well. Think of how foolish the incarnation sounds to worldly wisdom. Jesus Christ true God from eternity set aside the full use of his divine power and glory for a time to be born as a helpless infant. God then lived a life of poverty and humility on this earth and then willingly suffered and died on the cross to pay for the sins of the world. All this he did to purchase and redeem those who are by nature his enemies. Think of how foolish it is to picture God hanging in humiliation and dying on a cross. But this is the central truth of the Gospel. This is the profound spiritual truth that Luther restored to the church. On the slide, this morning is a picture of part of the altarpiece in the town church of Wittenberg. Luther from his pulpit is pointing to Christ dying on the cross because this is the center of Christian faith.

This message of the Gospel sounds like complete foolishness to the world. This is not how we would expect an all-powerful God to act. The world would expect the Son of God to come to this world with majesty and glory, not be born in the lowliness of a manager. The world would expect the Son of God to smite his enemies and rule this world with power and authority, not allow himself to be beaten, humiliated, and tortured. And the world would certainly not expect the Son of God to die. Just think how rare it is for someone to willingly die to save someone they love. Christ died to save those who are by nature his enemies. But this is exactly what Christ did for us. He did not come to this world to rule but to do the will of the Father. “For I have come down from heaven, not to do my will, but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me: that I should lose none of those he has given me, but raise them up on the Last Day. For this is the will of my Father: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life. And I will raise him up on the Last Day.”

Our God is just and holy. He cannot leave sin unpunished. But our God is also merciful and gracious. 2 Peter 2:9 reminds us, “The Lord is not slow to do what he promised, as some consider slowness. Instead, he is patient for your sakes, not wanting anyone to perish, but all to come to repentance.” God’s will was to send his one and only Son to this world to suffer and die for the sins of all people. On the cross, Jesus made full

and complete payment for all of our sins. But this too is a truth of Scripture that we struggle with. Our foolish human reason insists that we must do something to earn the forgiveness of God. We don’t like hearing the truth that by nature we are born dead in our trespasses and sins and can do nothing to save ourselves. This is why Luther wrote in his explanation of the Third Article, “I believe that I cannot by my own thinking or choosing believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him. But the Holy Spirit has called me by the gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”

Jesus says, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” It is God working through the gospel and the Holy Spirit who creates faith in our hearts. We do nothing to earn this salvation. We need Jesus to be our substitute. In John 6 Jesus tells us that he has seen the Father. The OT reminds us again and again that sinful humans cannot stand before the presence of God and to see the face of God is death. Because of our sins, we cannot stand in the presence of God. Christ alone is perfect and can see the face of God. Christ offered his perfect life as a sacrifice to pay for the sins of the world. By his death, we have been washed and cleansed in his holy blood. His perfection and righteousness cover our sins. Because of this, we can now stand in the presence of God. We are no longer objects of God’s wrath but are saints clothed in the perfection of Christ.

Jesus wants us to have this gift of salvation. He invites us again and again to eat the Bread of Life which gives life and salvation. He wants to draw us to himself through the proclamation of the gospel. We cannot earn heaven on our own. It is only by eating the Bread of Life that is Christ that we have the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Jesus emphasizes this point 5 different times in this section of John. He tells us that eternal life is found in him alone. By his death Christ paid for our sins and by his resurrection from the dead he destroyed the power of death and hell. All those who the Father has drawn to Christ have the amazing gift of eternal life.

The wisdom of the world rejects the message of the Gospel as pure foolishness. The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God. In fact, it is written: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will bring to nothing. Where is the wise man? Where is the expert in the Jewish law? Where is the probing thinker of the present age? Has God not shown that the wisdom of this world is foolish? Indeed, since the world through its wisdom did not know God, God in his wisdom decided to save those who believe, through the foolishness of the preached message. Yes, Jews ask for signs, Greeks desire wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified—which is offensive to Jews and foolishness to Greeks, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. We preach Christ crucified, because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” We boldly proclaim the message of Christ crucified. Our Savior looks foolish to the world as he hangs in shame on the cross, yet we know that it was on the cross that he won our salvation. This is the message that draws people to Christ. This is the message that offers forgiveness of sins, and this is the message that gives eternal life to all who eat the Bread of Life. Amen.

Hungry by Pastor Zarling

Hungry

John 6:24–35 When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” 26Jesus answered them, “Amen, Amen, I tell you: You are not looking for me because you saw the miraculous signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled. 27Do not continue to work for the food that spoils, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” 28So they said to him, “What should we do to carry out the works of God?” 29Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God: that you believe in the one he sent.”

30Then they asked him, “So what miraculous sign are you going to do, that we may see it and believe you? What miraculous sign are you going to perform? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32Jesus said to them, “Amen, Amen, I tell you: Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the real bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34“Sir,” they said to him, “give us this bread all the time!” 35“I am the Bread of Life,” Jesus told them. “The one who comes to me will never be hungry, and the one who believes in me will never be thirsty.”

They all ate the same spiritual food and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them—and that rock was Christ (1 Corinthians 10:3). Amen.

The family was in New Orleans for the day. They came hungry. They were ready to eat.

They began with a breakfast of beignets at Café du Monde. A beignet is a square piece of dough that is fried and covered with powdered sugar. Not healthy. But delicious. And addicting.

For lunch the family stopped at the French Market. They shared plates of Alligator Po Boy, Seafood Gumbo, and Grilled Catfish. For dessert they had Po Boy Ice Cream Sandwiches. On the way back to their rental home, they stopped at Whataburger.

They weren’t hungry anymore.

The people following Jesus were hungry. Earlier in John 6 crowds follow Jesus into a remote area. It’s dinner time and no one has any food except for a young boy whose mom packed his lunchbox with fish and bread. Jesus used that boy’s dinner to provide fish sandwiches for dinner for over 5000 people.

After the people went home with full bellies, Jesus sends his disciples across the Sea of Gailee. They are caught in a terrible storm, Jesus walks on water, climbs into the boat, calms the storm, and brings the boat to safety on the other side of the lake.

The day after the feeding of the 5000, the people can’t find Jesus. So, they get in their boats to create a search party. When they finally find Jesus, they are tired and frustrated and a little cranky. You can hear the edge in their voices, “Rabbi, when did you get here” (John 6:25)?

They are hungry. They want more of what they had the previous day. Jesus answers them, “Amen, Amen, I tell you: You are not looking for me because you saw the miraculous signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled” (John 6:26). Jesus knows they are hungry. But they are hungry for the wrong food. They want fast food. Not heavenly food. The crowds think that they can speak into the intercom, place their order for more fish and bread, and their stomachs will be full again for another day. But Jesus insists that he is no bread king. He is no Burger King.

The people are hungry. They know Jesus has something they want, though they are not real clear on what it is. Jesus doesn’t turn them away. He turns their attention away from what they want to what they need. He offers them himself. He says, “Do not continue to work for the food that spoils, but for

the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval” (John 6:27)

We really are not all that different from the people searching for Jesus in Capernaum. We are hungry, too. The Lord gives us physical gifts like “clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals and all I have.” They are great blessings of providence – just like God providing manna and quail in the desert or Jesus providing enough food to feed over 5000 hungry travelers. God provides us all these good gifts … and then we make them into idols because we believe the lack of them is death … and the possession of them is life.

In the movie The Lion King, the lion named Scar wants to usurp the throne, and he’s recruiting the hyenas to be his henchmen. His sales pitch? “Stick with me, and you’ll never go hungry again!” That sounds pretty human, doesn’t it?

We are so easily focused on the things of this world, thinking that if we could satisfy earthly longings, that we could then be content: “If only I had more money in my retirement account, then I could be happy.” “If only I had a different job, then I could be happy.” “If only I could get that new car, house, clothes, shoes, furniture, phone, then I would be satisfied.” But it never works.

We fill up our eyes with things that appear good to our flesh. But our eyes ignore what is godly for our soul.

We fill up our ears with the words and music of the world. But our ears are muted to the words and music of the spiritual world.

We fill up our bellies with regular meals and snacks. But our soul is often starved of the Bread of Life.

We fill up our time with education and entertainment, activities and athletics. But we leave little time to be educated and entertained by our Lord and his Word.

We fill up our days with work. But we are so tired with physical labor that we have no energy left to labor and work for our Lord.

Our natural appetites have a sweet tooth for the devil’s sugar and are turned off by the Living Bread from heaven. But that’s what happens when we have Adam and Eve’s taste for forbidden fruit. God’s food starts to taste bland, dull, and boring.

We spiritually starve ourselves for weeks by not sitting down to eat in the House of the Lord. We want quick and easy meals for the body. Sitting down to eat a seven-course meal for the soul with confession, absolution, liturgy, Scripture lessons, sermon, hymns, and benediction seems to take way too long.

What the body wants the body usually gets because we allow God’s physical blessings to become our stomach’s idols. Jesus wants to replace our idols with himself as the true God of heaven and earth. That’s the connection he makes when he says, “I am the Bread of Life. The one who comes to me will never be hungry, and the one who believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35). This is the first of Jesus’ “I am” statements in the Gospels. He is reminding the people of when Moses was on Mt. Sinai, and he saw the Angel of the Lord in the burning bush. Moses asked the Lord, “Who should I say sent me?” The Lord replied, “I AM has sent me to you” (Exodus 3:13, 14). Every time Jesus says, “I am,” he is connecting himself to the Angel of the Lord in the burning bush. He is more than a rabbi or teacher. He is the eternal, all-powerful Lord.

The eating we’ve been working for, the bread we’ve been chasing after, doesn’t give life. None of these bear the seal of the Father (John 6:27)! None of these shoulder the burden of guilt, the weight of glory, nor the hope of everlasting life. As long as we continue to scarf down the wrong kind of bread, we will continue to slowly starve ourselves to death. There is only one Bread that offers and delivers life.

Jesus declares, “I am the Bread of Life. The one who comes to me will never be hungry, and the one who believes in me will never be thirsty.”

Some people stay away from bread because they are trying to cut carbs. I tried cutting back on bread once. I lasted one whole meal. I know sandwiches are Pastor Klusmeyer’s favorite food. Bread is essential. It can meet any need. So can Jesus.

Not only is Jesus the great I Am. He is also the Word made flesh. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and dwelled among us” (John 1:1, 14). Jesus is the Word that fills you up when you are hungry.

When you are afraid, you read, “I sought the Lord, and he answered me. From all my terrors he delivered me” (Psalm 34:4).

When you are anxious, God reminds you, “Do not worry about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).

When you are hurting, depressed or lonely, you pray, “Do not forsake me, O Lord. My God, do not be far from me. Hurry to help me, O Lord, my salvation” (Psalm 38:21, 22).

When you are tempted, you are told, “Submit yourselves to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

Jesus says the reason God gave the Israelites manna in the desert was to nourish their bodies (John 6:31-33). But it was also to draw the people to trust that God would provide enough food for each household for each day (unless it was a Sabbath). The manna was given to sustain them body and soul, to strengthen faith, and point them to God (Exodus 16:15-31).

And so it was with Jesus and the feeding of the five thousand. Jesus provided this meal for the people not just to fill their bellies, but to point them to himself. That he is God in the flesh. That he is the One who has come to satisfy our greatest need – our need for forgiveness to overcome our sinful desires; our need for life to overcome death; our need for salvation to re-establish our fellowship with God. For that is the hunger we can never satisfy – only Jesus can. Only he who came for us, to be the Bread of Life.

That is true whether you are in the wilderness or by the lake or outside for worship; whether you have much or little; whether struggling or secure. There is only One who has what you need. Only One who can satisfy your hunger and fill you with good things. Only One who can purge death from you and grant you life eternal.

He is the One who has come down from heaven to do the work we could never do in defeating sin, death, and the devil. He is the Bread of Life baked in the fiery furnace of God’s wrath against sin. Like manna laying on the ground, so the Bread of Life was laid within the ground for three days. Now risen from the ground and death, he is the Bread of Life that is preached from our pulpits, taught in our classrooms, and laid upon our altars.

We don’t have any problems praying for the obvious needs of our stomachs. We are always hungering for something. Earthly problems are a concern. Earthly emergencies demand attention. Earthly conflicts need solutions. We must confess that the needs of our heart are not as pressing. That’s why we need to hear Jesus’ message on the Bread of Life today and for the next two Sundays. We need what the Bread of Life offers us – a stronger faith, the peace of forgiveness, the strength to overcome temptation.

Our prayer life is a good indicator of what is more important – our stomach or our heart.

Notice what Jesus does. He answers your prayers to fill your stomach with daily bread. But then he gives you so much more to meet the needs of your heart. He gives you his Word to refresh you. He gives you his forgiveness to renew you. He gives you his Spirit to regenerate you.

Still, we struggle. Our stomach is powerful. It controls our decisions, and it makes countless demands. Yet, your heart strengthened by the Lord is more powerful. It leads you to make God-pleasing decisions and helps you to recognize what is really important and what you really need.

What is really important and what we really need most is food for our souls. We need to know that our sins are removed and that we are at peace with God. We need to know where we are going when we leave this world. We need to have an answer to guilt and a purpose in life.

And in Jesus, we get all those things. Jesus paid for our sins and washed our guilt away. Jesus opened the gates of heaven for us. We are given purpose in life in loving and serving Jesus.

So, do you never want to be hungry again? Then feast! Feast on God’s Word, feast on the good-news message of Jesus, your Savior. And you will never go hungry again. Amen.

Jesus told them, “I am the Bread of Life. The one who comes to me will never be hungry, and the one who believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35). Amen.

Don’t Be Afraid by Pastor Klusmeyer

Don’t Be Afraid

Fear is an incredibly powerful emotion. People are afraid of all sorts of different things according to the internet there are more the 500 specifically named fears. Some of these are ridiculous like triskaidekaphobia, the fear of the number 13, and phobophobia, the fear of being afraid of things. And some are completely rational like the fear of snakes (I say rational because I’m afraid of snakes and there’s only one animal that God specifically cursed). Sometimes fear is a good thing, for example, a fear of high places keeps us from getting hurt. Other times fear is a bad thing because it demonstrates a lack of trust in the promises of God. We don’t believe that God is going to provide for our daily needs. We don’t believe that God is going to work all things out for our good. We don’t believe that we are saved by grace alone, surely, we need to do something to earn forgiveness. At its core, this kind of fear is a lack of faith. The solution to this kind of fear is not to find courage in ourselves but to put our trust in Christ our Savior whose Word is so powerful that it accomplishes in and for us the impossible, even courage in the most impossible circumstances.

Our gospel lesson this morning gives us two examples that show how fear often is a lack of trust in the promises of God. The first happens immediately. Jesus had just miraculously fed this large crowd. The people were so impressed with this miracle that they wanted to make Jesus their king. John tells us in his Gospel, “When the people saw the miraculous sign Jesus did, they said, ‘This really is the Prophet who is coming into the world.’ When Jesus realized that they intended to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.” The people did this because they were afraid. They were afraid of the Romans. They feared that their nation, culture, and very way of life were being destroyed. They knew God had promised he would send a Savior who would rescue them, but they wondered where God was. Why wasn’t he keeping his promises?

When they saw the power of Jesus displayed in this amazing miracle they decided to take matters into their own hands. They were not satisfied with the Messiah God had sent so they wanted to force Jesus to be king. They didn’t trust God’s promises. They didn’t understand that God had sent Jesus to destroy an enemy far more powerful than any earthly empire. They wanted someone to save them from the Romans, but God had sent Jesus to save all people from the power of death and hell.

In a way, we can sympathize with the crowd by the Sea of Galilee. We see our Christian values and morals under constant attack by a world that is hostile to God’s Word. We may be tempted to wonder where God is. Where is the God of the Old Testament who rained down fire and brimstone on his enemies? Where is the God who promised to rule over all things for the good of his church? Why isn’t God keeping his promises?! It’s so easy for us to get caught up in things that we can see and measure. We want God to act in big and exciting ways. But that’s not how God grows his kingdom. God is keeping his promises, and his kingdom is ever-growing. He grows his church by things that seem so simple and ordinary that we sometimes take them for granted. He grows his kingdom through the simple, ordinary act of one person sharing the love of Jesus with another. He grows his kingdom by the simple yet amazing act of sprinkling ordinary water on the head of a child. He gives his forgiveness through ordinary yet amazing means of a morsel of bread and a sip of wine that is also miraculously the body and blood of our Savior. We don’t need to be afraid of the raging of the world against the church of God because our enemies have already been defeated.

This is the blessed comfort we have. This is the reason that we don’t have to be afraid of the world. On the cross, our Savior crushed the head of Satan. He removed Satan’s power over us by paying for our sins with his holy precious blood. When Christ burst forth from the tomb on Easter morning he destroyed the power of sin, death, and hell once and for all. Our victory over the world is complete. The nations may plot and rage against us, but they are powerless before our Almighty God. This is the comfort we hear in our Psalm for this morning, “God is our refuge and strength, a helper who can always be found in times of trouble. That is why we will not fear when the earth dissolves and when the mountains tumble into the heart of the sea. Its waters roar and foam. The mountains quake when it rises. The LORD of Armies is with us. The God of Jacob is a fortress for us.”

The second example of fear happens with the disciples. As they were making their way across the Sea of Galilee a sudden storm broke out. The disciples were struggling and straining at the oars just trying to keep the

boat from being overwhelmed. Imagine being in a small boat struggling for hours against the wind and the waves. The disciples were already exhausted. This day began by trying to get away from the crowds, then feeding and ministering to a group of more than 5,000 people. Now they were in a boat struggling for their very lives against the wind and the waves. They must have been asking each other, “Where is Jesus? Why isn’t he here to help us?”

I think we sometimes feel this way as well. We are battered and tossed by the storms of life. We feel exhausted as we face one struggle after another. We feel like we are straining at an oar, but for every stroke forward we go three strokes back. We wonder where God is. We wonder why a loving God would pile one more thing on top of us. Why would God take a loved one away from us? Why would a loving God give me this disease? Where is God when I need to pay these bills? We feel frightened and angry because we don’t trust that God is keeping his promises. Like the disciples, we feel like we are doing everything we can just to stay afloat, and we’re doing it all alone.

But what the disciples had forgotten, and what we often forget is that we are never alone. Our God is faithful, and our God always keeps his promises. Suddenly in the dark and gloom, a figure appears walking on the water! The disciples were terrified probably thinking this meant that they were about to die. But out of the darkness comes the well-known voice of their friend and teacher, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Jesus was not simply speaking empty platitudes to his disciples. He was showing his disciples that he was true God. His Words had power! As Christ stepped into the boat suddenly the wind and the waves became still. The disciples did not understand that the power that multiplied a plate of bread and fish into a meal for the multitudes was the same power that now saved them from the raging storm.

When we face the storms of life we can be tempted to doubt the power of God as well. Christ’s Words remind us that we don’t need to be afraid. Christ’s Words remind us that God is always with us and is always watching over us. We know our God is faithful because he has kept every promise including the great promise to send his Son to destroy the power of the Devil. The same Jesus who was able to walk on water and calm the power of the storm was the same Jesus who willingly allowed himself to be arrested, to be humiliated, and to be nailed to a cross. Christ willingly allowed himself to be tortured and crucified because of his great love for you. He wanted you to be part of his kingdom. He knew that there was nothing that you could do to save yourself, so he offered himself in your place. Christ wanted to cover you with his blood so that you could stand pure and holy before the throne of God.

There will be times that we feel like we are all alone on a storm-tossed sea. We may be tempted to fear and think that God is not with us. We may even be tempted to think that God has forgotten us. Satan wants us to give in to this temptation. Satan wants us to doubt God’s promises. In those moments we remember the cross of Christ. We remember that God knows each of us by name. That he loved us so much that offered himself as a sacrifice to save us. We remember that we have God who fights for us and who is mighty to save. We remember the strong right arm of our God who drowned Pharaoh in the depths of the sea, who surrounded his prophet Elish with a host of angels, and who crushed the head of our enemy Satan on the cross. Our courage is found in the death and resurrection of Christ, so we cling to his words, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Rom 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor rulers, neither things present nor things to come, nor powerful forces, neither height nor depth nor anything else in creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1 Thessalonians 4:1-12 by Pastor Ulhorn

1 Thessalonians 4:1-12

It’s been a few years since I went to school. But here’s what I generally remember about it. The teacher instructs you about something. You take notes while they are teaching. You get sent home with a workbook, which helps you remember and apply what you learned. Sometime in the future there’s a quiz or a test.

Is not really a stretch I don’t think to say that’s more or less what life is like too. Life lessons are going on all around you, and you better be taking notes. You better be paying attention. You are going to have to apply these life lessons soon enough. Take good notes, go through your workbook and practice, and be ready for some sort of test.

And isn’t that what the beginning of our reading from 1 Thessalonians sounds like, too? “Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. 2For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.”

Twice in that section there’s a reference to instructions. And there’s an urging and encouraging to put into practice the instruction and to do so, more and more. Later, there’s even a warning about what happens if you fail the pop quiz. “The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you”.

We will see this morning how much school and our faith have in common. Or don’t. Quick spoiler. There’s a pop quiz alright, but the pass / fail part of it is not about what we did or didn’t do, but about what Jesus did in our place. Even more good news – if we don’t think we’ve got the smarts or the ability to come up with the right answers to God and do the right actions for God, we’ve got God’s grace and power to do exactly what we need to. And really that’s our prayer this morning - Lord, give us the wisdom and knowledge to do the things that please you. In other words – teach us Lord. And the second part of our prayer is: And then Lord, after you’ve taught us – give us the grace and power to put into practice what you’ve taught us.

Yes, the beginning of our reading is instructions about God-pleasing living. But it’s a dangerous thing to just read one section of Scripture without understanding the context that surrounds it. And that context in 1 Thessalonians is this. These Christians in the city of Thessalonica came to a saving faith in Jesus the God sent Savior of the world. They were taught and the Holy Spirit worked faith in their hearts that caused them to believe that Jesus took away all their sins through his perfect life of substitution and through his atoning death on the cross. In this book of the Bible the apostle Paul thanks God for the faith of these Christians and encourages them to remain standing firm in the faith. He knows there will be pressure for them to stop believing in salvation through Christ alone. Again and again he writes about staying in the faith. And then, here, he gives them a workbook so that they can.

So, maybe the first takeway is this: we don’t follow God’s instructions just for the sake of following them. We don’t even live holy lives for the purpose of getting right with God. We are right with God through faith in Christ Jesus who lived for us and died for us and took away all the unright things we’ve done. But in order to stay close to God now so that we are ready to live with him after that great pop quiz day, we need to remain in the faith. And one way to remain in the faith is to live how God wants us to live. To keep doing what we are doing and get even better at it.

I helped coach Little League baseball when my boys were that age. And every day we would practice, we would hit grounder after grounder for the infielders – hit fly balls for the outfielders – and throw batting practice. You could always tells the boys who did this at home with mom and dad – and those who didn’t touch a glove or a bat unless they were at practice. The ones who practice at practice and at home …. Got better and better at it. Muscle memory formed. Tracking a fly ball got easier. They grew more comfortable at the plate. So. I spent some time in Baltimore MD when Cal Ripken was playing He said – it’s not “practice makes perfect. It’s perfect practice makes perfect. So. If more practice makes more perfect works for baseball skills, do you think it can also work for Christian believing and Christian living?

“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, 5not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;”

More important than corralling a baseball is controlling your own body. Do that and you will avoid sexual immorality. Do that and you will act in a way that is holy and honorable. Don’t do that and you aren’t acting like the heathen who do not know God.

God knew what he made when he made us. He made not many of us to go through this life alone. And so he made a complimentary partner for us. Someone that is not random, but there for us, every single day, good days and bad. Someone who can give us a hug when we need it the most. When he did this, he instituted marriage. And when he did this he gave 1 man and 1 woman something very special - the gift of sex. It was meant to bring about children, yes, but also joy and closeness in a marriage. It was not meant to be abused.

Oh my, how the people of today have abused and perverted God’s gift of sex. It makes us blush to even think about. Except that we don’t blush anymore. We’re hardly even phased by it. Not when it shows up on our television screen. Not

when certain words flow so easily from our mouths. Not when we are quick to defend ourselves with, “Don’t judge me. I can do with my body whatever I want”.

There’s an easy fix for how we’ve fallen to being an adulterous nation. Stop and review. God loves us. In love he gives us the gift of marriage. Read the instructions about marriage and put them into practice. Find a good God-fearing spouse. Go to church with this spouse and raise a God fearing God loving God believing family. Remain committed to your spouse until death parts you. You’ll find love. You’ll find happiness. You’ll be a good example. And more and more people will want the same good marriage that God has blessed you with.

The apostle Paul goes on to more instruction, more review, and more encouragement to add on to what they have already learned. “Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more”.

Paul sounds like a good teacher. I know you know this. I know you are doing this. Now I urge you to do it more and more and better and better. The subject is brotherly love. And love is much more than a feeling, it’s an action. To love each other means to help each other. To physically do what you can for someone who is in need. God feels so strongly about this that he has the apostle John write, ““We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ yet hates his brother, he is a liar.”. In other words – you can’t really be a believer in God unless you are willing to love one another. And I’m not sure loving one another includes insulting someone because their political beliefs are contrary to yours. And I’m not sure that loving one another means blaming someone else for all of your problems. And I’m not sure loving one another means hanging on to something that happened 15 years ago. And I’m not sure loving one another means hoarding everything you’ve got for yourself. I am sure that if you want to get better at being willing to love and help and forgive one another, you need to start practicing it. Take home the workbook and review and practice and do so more and more.

And when you are so busy practicing and practicing on loving and loving more, you’ll be more productive because you’ll be more busy and you’ll be more quiet.

Paul writes, “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, 12so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.”

The male Greeks of Paul’s day, were not known for their lifestyle of manual labor. The Greeks loved oratory. Greek men often had the ambition of being the best at using public speeches to sway large crowds. Oratory was one of the main studies Greek boys had to pursue. As well as producing great orators, this also resulted in a lot of loudmouths. Being quiet and minding your own business was another way that God teaches us to love one another. Spending all day talking can lead to spending all day complaining. Gossiping. Not getting anything done. And that’s no way to love God and love God’s people.

I realize as someone who talks for a living, I may sound like a bit of a hypocrite. But Paul isn’t telling us all to go out and get a job in the coal mine otherwise we aren’t living the Christian life. He’s saying, its’ okay to keep your opinions to yourself. It’s alright if you just walk away when someone starts talking bad about someone else. We don’t need to counter and argue every point that we disagree with. Maybe the Greeks sat around all day talking, but that’s nothing to aim for because that kind of idleness only gets you into trouble. And if you are of the age, and have the ability, get a job.

Most importantly, do all of this in the Lord Jesus. That’s the how of God pleasing Christian living. We do it, in view of his mercy. In response to his unconditional unfailing forgiving love. In full knowledge and faith of what he has done for us. In thanksgiving. As a part of your faith. As you wait for his coming again. When Jesus comes again, it will be sudden, like a pop quiz, but we won’t fail because he did not fail in living under these same set of laws and passing with a 100% A+. When he comes again, our C’s, D’s, and F’s won’t be coming with us, because they’ve been forgiven, forgotten, wiped from the report cards and record books. But we don’t know when he’s coming again. So we’ve got to keep studying. Keep reviewing. And keep practicing. Good thing we’ve got the instruction manual and the workbook to take home. Amen.

True Rest is Found in Christ by Pastor Klusmeyer

Text: Mark 6:30-34 Proper 11B

SN: 0056 07/21/24

True Rest is Found in Christ

In Mark 6:31 Jesus says to his disciples, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest awhile.” This passage is a powerful reminder to us that we need to take time out of our busy lives to find peace and rest in the presence of our Lord. This passage always reminds me of one of my favorite places at Camp Phillip. There was a clearing way back in the woods up on a tall hill. The clearing was surrounded by massive oak trees and there was a granite plaque with this passage engraved on it. I loved that spot because when you were there it felt like you were miles from anyone else. It was a secluded place where I could rest and think about the beauty and majesty of God’s creation. In our Gospel lesson this morning Jesus emphasized the importance of finding true rest in him.

There is a lot that happens in Mark chapter 6. A few Sundays ago, we heard how Jesus was rejected by the people of his hometown of Nazareth. After this, Jesus sent out his Twelve Disciples two-by-two to preach a message of repentance to the people of Galilee. We also hear in chapter 6 that it was around this time that Herod had ordered John the Baptist to be beheaded. As the disciples returned from the mission we can guess their emotional state. They were probably filled with joy at the successes they had as they taught the Word of God drove out demons and healed the sick in the name of Jesus. But they were probably exhausted after this period of intense ministry.

Jesus knew how important it would be to go away with his disciples for a while to rest and recharge before continuing their ministry. He probably wanted to talk with them about their successes and failures and give them a chance to recover. Jesus most likely also wanted to take this time to mourn for the loss of cousin John the Baptist and prepare his disciples for the opposition they would face from Herod and other Jewish leaders as they continued to proclaim the message that Jesus was the promised Messiah. Jesus wanted to take a brief period to rest and recharge his disciples.

Rest is something we all need. We know how we feel if we don’t get enough rest. We feel tired and exhausted. We know that we are not as mentally sharp as we should be, and we know that a lack of rest makes us grumpy and irritable. Not getting enough rest is not good for our physical health. When we get run down and exhausted, we are more susceptible to illness and disease. The same is true of our spiritual health. If we do not get enough spiritual rest, we can become spiritually weak and exhausted. And what happens when we are in this spiritual state? We are more susceptible to the attacks of Satan. We are more prone to give into temptation and fall into sin and we are more tempted to doubt that God is watching over us.

God does not want us to be in his weakened condition. God is our Good and Loving Shepherd. He wants to watch over and care for his sheep. He wants us to be healthy and happy. One of the best ways to do this is to take time to rest and refresh ourselves in the Word of the Lord. God’s Word is our source of strength and comfort. God’s Word reminds us that we have true peace and rest because all of our sins have been forgiven by the death of Christ. God wants us to find joy resting in him. The Bible often talks about resting in the Lord as times of refreshment, just think of the beautiful words of Psalm 23, “The LORD is my shepherd. I lack nothing. He causes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul.”

Unfortunately, we live in a world that seeks to do everything possible to distract us from finding our true rest in the Lord. We are bombarded by a never-ending stream of messages telling us that we should never be content with what we have. The only way we can find joy and happiness is if we have the next newest and best thing. We have social media that is teaching us to compare our lives to other people and covetously desire what they have. We are told that the only way we can be happy is if we work hard so we can earn more money to buy more stuff and then this stuff will make us happy.

But what’s the unfortunate truth? None of this leads to happiness. If we are constantly comparing our lives to others, we are never going to be happy. If we think that we will find joy in having enough material possessions, then we are never going to have enough to fill that void in our lives. If we are constantly worried about working harder and making enough money, we are filled with stress and may even suffer burnout. Satan loves to take advantage of us when we are in this weakened state. He does everything he can to look for rest and

relief in every place except in Jesus. Just think of some of the sins that come from being stressed and burned out. Maybe we give in to unhealthy habits like overindulging in food or alcohol. Maybe we let our stress get the better of our emotions and we lash out in anger at others to make ourselves feel better. Or perhaps we seek to escape and waste hours and hours binge-watching television or aimlessly scrolling through our phones. We do everything we can to escape except doing the one thing that would bring us true rest: refreshing ourselves with God’s Word.

This is why God in the Old Testament made keeping the Sabbath Day such part of the 10 Commandments. He knew that his people needed a constant reminder of their need to find peace and rest in him. We need this reminder as well. On our own, we sinfully look for rest in all the wrong places, but God’s Word reminds us that it is Christ alone that we find true rest and contentment. Paul reminds us of this in Philippians chapter 4 which we wrote while he was in chains for the Gospel, “I know what it is to live in humble circumstances, and I know what it is to have more than enough. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation while being full or hungry while having plenty or not enough. I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

Paul knew that the secret to rest and contentment was found in Christ alone. It is only through Jesus that we have peace with God. Jesus restored our relationship that sin had destroyed. Christ took all our sins upon himself and paid for them with his life. When we were baptized, we were connected to the death and resurrection of Christ and born again as children of God. Christ sacrificed everything to redeem us. We see this sacrificial love of our Savior in our Gospel. Christ and his disciples were exhausted and wanted to rest. But when Jesus saw the crowds, he was filled with compassion towards them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.

In the same way, Christ was filled with compassion toward us. He saw that by nature we were lost and condemned creatures who could do nothing to save ourselves. Christ came to this world and lived a perfect life in our place. He then offered his life on the cross to make full and complete payment for the sins of the world. His perfect sacrifice becomes our righteousness through faith. Because we are righteous, we now have peace with God. We have a peace that the world does not understand because we are freed from the burden of guilt and shame. By the resurrection of Christ, we are also freed from the fear of death. We know that death has been swallowed up in victory and that those who have faith in Jesus as their Savior will know the joy of eternal life with him.

Dear friends this is the peace and joy that we have which is found only in the glorious revelation of the Gospel. This is the rest that we need to be reminded of again and again. Satan and the world want to rob us of our rest. They want us to try and find peace and rest everywhere except in Christ. But we know that true rest is found in Christ alone. The message of the Gospel that we hear each Sunday is an invitation to “come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” What a joyous opportunity to gather together with our brothers and sisters in Christ and find rest from the trials and temptations of the world. What a joy to gather around the Lord’s table and receive the peace of forgiveness as we eat and drink the blood of Christ.

Our Gospel lesson this morning reminds us of the importance of taking time to find rest in Christ alone. We are refreshed and encouraged in our faith as we gather together around the Word of God. This is the reason we are emphasizing the importance of family devotions in our weekly Bible study. God’s Word is what gives us strength and comfort, peace, and joy. God’s Word reminds us of all the mighty deeds that our God has done for us and reminds us of the peace and rest we have in Christ alone.

Called and Sent by Pastor Zarling

Called and Sent

Mark 6:7-13 Jesus called the Twelve and began to send them out two by two. He gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8He instructed them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their money belts. 9They were to put on sandals but not to wear two coats. 10He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that area. 11Any place that will not receive you or listen to you, as you leave there, shake off the dust that is under your feet as a testimony against them.” 12They went out and preached that people should repent. 13They also drove out many demons. They anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3). Amen.

About 15 years ago, a young pastor asked me for advice on his divine call. I said, “You can have calls like I did. I was assigned out of the Seminary to a brand-new church. Be the first pastor so no one can compare you to previous pastors. Or you can accept a call to a church where the previous pastor was so bad that he was kicked out of the Synod. Then, all you have to do is show up, preach the truth, and love the people.”

This morning, we see Jesus sending his disciples out with authority to preach and drive out demons. We will examine the divine call of the pastor. What is the call? Why do pastors get calls from other churches? What is the work of the pastor? What is the work of the people? And how does Jesus forgive and use sinful pastors and sinful people to do his ministry work?

How does Jesus call pastors into the ministry? It’s a little different than what Jesus did with his apostles. Jesus walked up to Peter and Andrew, James and John, while they were mending their nets along the Sea of Galilee and invited them to follow him. He called Matthew out of his tax collector’s booth. He knocked Saul off his horse on the road to Damascus, blinded and baptized him. Jesus gave them years of Seminary training and then sent them out as apostles.

Today, Jesus still calls men into the pastoral ministry. Instead of him calling them audibly like with his apostles, he uses congregations to call pastors in his name and for his ministry. Pastors in the WELS do not go looking for a call to another church. Another church comes looking for them. Presently, there are about 140 pastoral vacancies in the WELS. Pastors are eligible to receive divine calls every 6 months. So, some pastors may receive calls regularly.

When a pastor receives a divine call to another congregation, he then has to decide where his gifts can best serve the Lord of the Church – his current call or his new call. The pastor will talk to pastors, principals, teachers, leaders, and people in both congregations. He’ll talk to his family and talk to the Lord in prayer. The pastor may be looking for a new challenge. The Lord may have grown his gifts for a specialized ministry. Or the pastor may see there is work to be done in his current congregation. Through the call the Lord may have opened the eyes of the pastor and his people to focus more on the work at hand.

Deliberating on divine calls may be easy or can be very difficult. For example, when I received the call to come to Epiphany, Shelley and I took our three girls for a little trip to Cincinnati. On the way there, I was returning the call. On the way home, I was accepting the call. More recently, last year when I had the call to Modesto, California, for the first two weeks, I was accepting the call. Then after talking to good friends at Water of Life, I was returning the call.

In our Epistle lesson, St. Paul establishes qualifications for those serving in the public ministry when he writes to Pastor Titus: “Indeed an overseer, since he is God's steward, must be blameless, not arrogant, not quick-tempered, not a drunkard, not violent, not eager for dishonest

gain. Instead, he must be hospitable, loving what is good, self-controlled, upright, devout, and disciplined. He must cling to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he will be able both to encourage people by the sound teaching and also to correct those who oppose him” (Titus 1:7-9).

Lord willing, your pastor will have those qualifications for the public ministry. But please understand that your pastor is also a sinner. He will make mistakes. Lots of them. As a new pastor and home missionary, my Mission Counselor advised me, “Michael, if you are a pastor who likes to be in the office working and studying, you need to schedule time to be with your people. If you are a pastor who likes to be with the people, you need to schedule time to be in your office.”

I’ve talked to lots of pastors over my 28 years in the ministry. Some pastors can spend a lot of time with their ministry and then neglect their family. Other pastors can spend a lot of time with their family and neglect their ministry.

Pastor can often be Alphas and leaders. They may not always play nicely with others – other pastors, other called workers, other leaders in their congregation. I’ve had calls to come to churches to clean up the mess created by associate pastors who couldn’t get along with each other.

I tell you this because I pray that you have patience with your pastors. Show love to your pastors. And be willing to give lots of forgiveness to your pastors. Be willing to talk to your pastor – not about your pastor to others, because that’s gossip. Talk to your pastor. Let him know if you think he needs to tweak his work schedule, spend more time with his family or his church family. Hopefully you love your pastors. Love them enough to be honest and open with them.

By God’s grace, Pastor Klusmeyer and I do work very well together. Even though we are opposites in many ways. He’s listening to Greek and Hebrew in our office. I’m reading graphic novels of the Bible. I’m the big picture, planning guy. He loves the minutia. In golf, he hits his drives far and to the right. I hit my drives farther and straight.

Pastors understand that their members are also sinners. People will take their pastors’ words the wrong way. Maybe they don’t show him the respect he deserves as God’s called servant.

Members may not like their pastors’ sermons or teaching style or personality. That’s OK. We don’t always like everything about everyone. But if that is the man your God called to serve as your pastor, then he deserves the respect of listening to him, learning from him, and getting to know him. Because when the pastor preaches and teaches, that is the voice of your Savior coming through the mouth of your pastor.

I know of a situation in another church where a member didn’t like one of his two pastors. He asked me if it was OK if could contact the church office for the preaching schedule. When the pastor he didn’t like was preaching, then he would go to another WELS church. I told that member, “That is absolutely not OK! That’s your pastor. You go to church and you listen to him.” Thankfully, that member listened. He sat in the pews and really concentrated on his pastor’s sermons. He admitted to me that he was the problem, not the pastor.

It's good to defend your pastor. About a decade ago, I went to see Elenore, one of our homebound members. She lived close to the church, so I biked there. When I walked into her house, she told me, “I had to defend you again.” I just shook my head and said, “Now what?” She said, “One of the ladies asked me, ‘Do you think Pastor Zarling bikes so much because he’s trying to tell us that we don’t pay him enough?’” I was stunned. I said, “You can tell whoever

you talked to that I just had my second knee surgery and the doctor said I don’t have any cartilage left in my knee. That means I can’t run anymore. I bike because I don’t want to be the fat pastor.” She said, “No, I told her, ‘Don’t you have anything better to do than to bother my pastor.” I laughed and said, “That’s way better!”

Pastors need to have patience with their members. They need to show love and grace to their members. We are called to offer Christ’s forgiveness to those gathered within the church. This patience, love, grace, and forgiveness of pastors and people come straight from Jesus Christ. St. Paul describes it this way, “We hold this treasure in clay jars to show that its extraordinary power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). Or, as my Mission Counselor put it, “We are all cracked pots.”

The point of these stories is that Jesus uses congregations to call pastors into the public ministry. Jesus then sends his pastors where he needs them to serve in his kingdom.

Jesus uses a cracked pot like your pastor to share a very special message – a message of patience, love, grace, and forgiveness that only comes through the Savior of pastor and people.

The pastor is the voice of Christ to his people. He reminds you of the Father’s consolation and care in working everything to your eternal benefit. He reminds you of the Savior’s work in forgiving all your sins. He reminds you of the Spirits comfort when you are suffering or grieving.

The pastor is the man appointed with authority by Christ to use his ministry of the keys to lock heaven to the unrepentant, but open wide the gates of heaven to the contrite.

The pastor is speaking with authority because he is speaking on God’s behalf. Remember how the prophet Amos responded to his critic, Amaziah. Amos said, “I was not a prophet, nor was I a son of a prophet. Rather, I was a sheep breeder and I took care of sycamore fig trees. But the Lord took me from tending flocks, and the Lord said to me, “Go, prophesy to my people Israel” (Amos 7:14-15). The pastor may be gifted in some areas and lacking in others. But be assured of this – he has been called and sent by Jesus to go prophecy to his people.

The pastor is authorized by Christ to counteract the accusatory lies of Satan that burden the consciences of sinners. He is authorized by Christ to use his mouth to fill up your ears with God’s Law to point out your sins and God’s Gospel to absolve your sins. He is authorized by Christ to use his hand to pour water over the infants’ head at the baptismal font, to use his hand to give you Christ’s body and blood into your mouth, and to use his hand to hold the hand of the dying saint on their deathbed.

C.F.W. Walther wrote this about people and their pastors, “Concerning the true shepherds, even if they are also poor, weak, vulnerable men, that you be merciful to them, as your father in heaven is merciful, to pray for them and, finally, not to forget that God’s Word calls to you: “Take heed of your teachers and follow them,” (as they present you God’s Word), “for they watch over your souls as those who must give account, that they do so with joy and not with sorrow, for that would not be good for you” (C.F.W. Walther, “Second Sunday after Epiphany: On the Public Preaching Office. Epistle: Romans 12:7-16”).

God called an ordinary man like Amos the shepherd to be his prophet. Jesus chose ordinary men like fishermen and tax collectors to be his apostles. Jesus continues to choose ordinary men like Pastor Klusmeyer and myself to be your pastors. He calls and sends us – with all our weaknesses and failings - to be your pastors at Water of Life. He invites you – with all your faults and flaws – to call us to serve you. Jesus, the Lord of the Church, calls imperfect people into his ministry to share the message of a perfect Savior. A Savior from all our weaknesses and failings, all our

faults and flaws. He has called and sent us to work together with patience, love, grace, and forgiveness. Amen.

St. Paul wrote to the Philippians, “The things that you learned, received, heard, and saw in me: Keep doing these things. And the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:9). Amen.

Reject the Messenger, Reject the Message

Reject the Messenger, Reject the Message

Have you ever had a situation where someone is telling you something and you know deep down that what they're saying is correct but you're unwilling to listen to that message because of the person who is giving it to you? The message is correct but because of the person giving it, you have an irrational urge to reject that message. Maybe you've experienced this in the realm of politics. A politician can be saying something that you know is correct and yet because they don't have the right letter after their name you are completely unwilling to listen to what they have to say. It's amazing how often we can let our biases about someone cloud our willingness to listen. We often reject a message simply because of what we know about the messenger.

This is exactly what happened to Jesus in our gospel account for this morning. Jesus had been having great success preaching and teaching throughout the region of Galilee. Large crowds have been following Jesus wherever he went. He had been performing great and mighty miracles including raising the daughter of Jairus from the dead. Jesus now decides to return to his hometown of Nazareth to proclaim the message of the Kingdom of God to the people he had grown up with.

Undoubtedly the people of Nazareth had heard about Jesus's fame as he had been teaching and preaching in the surrounding villages. They must have been excited to hear that he was coming home. On the Sabbath day, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach about the scriptures. Mark does not tell us exactly what Jesus said on this occasion. It was most likely similar to other things he had said. He read from the Old Testament and explained how the promises and prophecies of God were being fulfilled in him. He proclaimed that he was the Son of God and the promised Messiah who had come to free all people from their sins.

The people of Nazareth were amazed at the teaching of Jesus. They wondered how this man they grew up with could be teaching these things. They asked, “Where did this man learn these things? What is this wisdom that has been given to this man? How is it that miracles such as these are performed by his hands? Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And aren’t his sisters here with us?” Put yourself in the shoes of the people of Nazareth for a moment. Imagine that someone from your hometown someone you had grown up with returns and begins claiming that he is the son of God. How would you react? Most likely you would think that they were crazy. You would think that there is no way this young man from your town could be the Son of God. Now consider what else they knew about Jesus. Imagine growing up with someone who never sinned. Imagine knowing someone who was perfectly kind, loving, and selfless to everyone around him. Now imagine hearing about the mighty miracles that this person performed, how they healed the sick and raised the dead.

The people of Nazareth knew all of this and yet they still rejected the message of Jesus. Even his own brothers and sisters rejected him. They simply could not accept that the man they had grown up with, the man they knew as the carpenter from their town could be the promised Messiah. They were so scandalized that it was Jesus who was proclaiming this message to them that they rejected the truth of God’s Word in the face of overwhelming evidence. They rejected the message because of the messenger.

Unfortunately, we sometimes act the same way. We are unwilling to listen to the truth of God’s Word because we have a problem with the messenger. There can be many reasons for this: maybe we’ve been hurt or offended by something that person has said to us in the past, or maybe we know that they have done the exact same thing and think of them as hypocritical for even pointing our sin out to us, or perhaps we think that the person pointing out our sin to us simply doesn’t understand the situation that we are going through.

Other times we reject the messenger because we don’t like the message he is proclaiming. The people of Nazareth did not want to hear Jesus claiming to be the Son of God. There are times when we don’t want to hear the hard truths of God’s Word. We don’t want to hear that we are sinners who daily sin against God in our thoughts, words, and actions. We don’t want to hear that on our own there is nothing we can do to save ourselves and that when it comes to salvation our good works count for absolutely nothing. Our sinful nature hates hearing this message and Satan will do everything in his power to have us reject that message and turn our backs against God.

The people of Nazareth rejected Jesus. Mark tells us that Jesus was amazed at their unbelief. Jesus could have let the rejection of his hometown discourage him, but instead, he immediately went to the surrounding

villages and continued preaching and teaching. The next section of Mark’s Gospel tells us that Jesus sent out the Twelve disciples so that more people could hear the message of salvation. This is an amazing picture of our Savior’s love and mercy. No matter how many times he was rejected he continued to preach and teach the Word of God. Christ showed perfect love and faithfulness in the face of opposition, even when he was rejected by his own friends and family.

This is the same way that God continues to deal with us. We daily sin much and yet God offers us forgiveness again and again. There have been times when we have resisted or rejected the messengers or message of God and yet he offers us the message of his Gospel again and again. Christ is always waiting with open arms to offer us forgiveness for all our sins. Our God is gracious and loving and wants all people to be with him in the joy of his eternal kingdom. There is no sin that is too great for the forgiveness of God. Every sin that you have ever committed or will ever commit was nailed to the cross of Christ and paid for with his holy, precious blood. Christ took all your sins on himself and became sin for you. In return, he has given you, his righteousness. You stand perfect in the eyes of God washed clean of all your sins by the blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

This righteousness becomes ours by faith in Christ alone. We receive this faith by hearing the message of the Gospel preached to us over and over again. The Spirit of God works through the Word to create faith in the hearts of those who hear the message of the Gospel. This is why it is vitally important that we continue to proclaim the truth of Christ crucified to the world.

Unfortunately, we know that this is a never-ending struggle. The world hates the message of salvation. Satan is doing everything in his power to hinder the spread of the Gospel. We saw how Jesus was rejected in Nazareth, and we know from the Old Testament how often the people rejected the prophets of God. We heard this morning in our reading from Ezekiel that often we are proclaiming God’s Word to brazen-faced and hard-hearted people. We see in our world how Christians are hated and reviled. We are called unloving and hateful because we dare to proclaim that Christ is the only way to salvation. The world will reject and hate us just as it rejected and hated Christ.

We know that at times we are like the people of Nazareth. We are tempted to reject the message of God’s Word because of the messenger. Satan loves to use the opportunities to lead us away from the truths of God’s Word. He wants there to be arguments and division in the church of God. He wants people to reject the messengers of God’s Word because he knows that this will lead them away from the message as well. We take comfort for those who reject God’s Word because we know that God continues to work through his Word. God’s Word also takes time. We know that Jesus's own brothers rejected his message at Nazareth. But we also know that later on his brother James would become a leader and champion of the early church who was killed for his faith.

Dear friends, we will face times of trial and persecution as well. We will be hated and rejected for being messengers of Christ. In his letter to Timothy Paul tells us that he was in chains for the Gospel, but he also boldly proclaims, “But the word of God is not chained.” God’s Word cannot fail. It always accomplishes his purposes no matter how Satan, the world, and our own sinful nature try and prevent it. We cling to the promises of God and know that our victory is certain. Christ has defeated the power of Satan. There is nothing the world can do for us because our salvation and the glory of heaven are ours now and forever. Amen.

This saying is trustworthy: Indeed, if we have died with him, we will also live with him; If we endure, we will also reign with him; If we deny him, he will also deny us; If we are faithless, he remains faithful, because he cannot deny himself.

“Don’t be afraid. Only believe.” by Pastor Zarling

“Don’t be afraid. Only believe.”

Mark 5:21-24a, 35-43 21When Jesus had again crossed over in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him near the sea. 22Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet 23and repeatedly pleaded with him, “My little daughter is near death. Please come and place your hands on her so that she may be healed and live.”

24Jesus went with him.

35While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue ruler’s house arrived, saying, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher anymore?”

36But when Jesus heard this report, he told the synagogue ruler, “Don’t be afraid. Only believe.” 37He did not allow anyone to follow him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. 38They went into the house of the synagogue ruler, and Jesus saw a commotion with people weeping and wailing loudly. 39When he entered, he said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but sleeping.”

40They laughed at him. But after he put everyone out, he took the father of the child, her mother, and those who were with him and went in where the child was. 41Grasping the hand of the child, he said to her, “Talitha, koum!” (When translated, that means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!”) 42Immediately the little girl stood up and began to walk around. (She was twelve years old.) They were completely and utterly amazed. 43Then he gave them strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and he told them to give her something to eat.

By the mercies of the LORD we are not consumed, for his compassions do not fail. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22-23). Amen.

They thought it would be funny. At the WELS Youth Rally, 14 teens got into the elevator. The capacity for the elevator was 5.

They thought it would be funny. On the count of 3 all 14 teens jumped.

The elevator stopped. They still thought it was funny. They were at the rally with 2900 teens, and they were stuck in an elevator.

It stopped being funny 20 minutes into the ordeal. There wasn’t a lot of room to move or even sit down in the elevator. It was hot. It was cramped. Teens started getting nervous. Anxious. Even a bit afraid.

But they all cheered when the fire fighters arrived to open the elevator and rescue them.

Fear is a common, everyday emotion. Perhaps it is even the strongest of human emotions, often stemming from the unknown, unfamiliar, and indefinite. There are many things we are afraid of. Afraid of physical creatures like snakes and spiders. Afraid of physical ailments like a stroke or dementia. Afraid of emotional conditions like depression or loneliness. All of us are afraid of death – the death of a child, the death of a spouse, the death of a parent, and facing our own death.

He uses the Greek word “eschatos,” “ending.” “My little daughter is ending.” But in Jesus, it will be just the beginning.

On the way to Jairus’ home, some men came from his house with the sad news, “Your daughter is dead.” Now she is the perfect patient for the Great Physician of body and soul. For if Jesus came not for the healthy, but for the sick, then above all, he came for the dead. To give life from death.

Death is not natural. It is the terrible rending of the soul from the body. We were created not to die, but live. But death has reigned since the forbidden fruit was tasted. Fear took over with the sound of God’s footsteps in the Garden. Fear finds its fulfillment in God’s curse: “From dust you are and to dust you will return” (Genesis 3:19).

As sinners, we should be afraid of death. For the Bible says, “you are dead in your trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1); and “the soul who sins is the one who will die” (Ezekiel 18:20); and “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). We are as dead as a little girl whose heart and breathing have stopped. Though we may look good on the outside, our bodies are being ravaged by the effects of sin – illnesses, ailments, tumors, strokes, dementia, etc. Our bodies are always one step from the grave.

“But when Jesus heard this report, he told the synagogue ruler, “Don’t be afraid. Only believe” (Mark 5:36). Jairus gets to see what nine of Jesus’ regular disciples did not get to see – Jesus raises his daughter back to life. Jairus saw Jesus stare death in the face and death back down.

That’s a picture of what is going to happen to you and your Christian loved ones. The world laughs at that, as the gathered mourners laughed at Jesus when he said, “The child is not dead but sleeping” (Mark 5:39). Unless Jesus returns before you die, you will be like this little girl. You will be awakened from the sleep of your death by the voice of Jesus. He will take you by the hand and raise you to a new life that will never end. Then he will have someone get you something to eat from his marriage feast of the Lamb.

Here’s what you need to know and believe. In your Baptism, Jesus has already said to you what he said to the little girl in your native Aramaic tongue, “Talitha koum!” “My child, arise!” And that’s what Jesus is going to say to you upon the trumpet blast ushering in Judgment Day, “Talitha koum!” “My child, arise!” calling you from your grave. Then you will run around heaven for an eternity, and Jesus will feed you at his feast forever.

Those teens stuck in the elevator weren’t going to die. But they were still afraid. Our greatest fear comes from looking at death. But Jesus’ words chase away fear. When Jesus draws near, fear flees and faith is strengthened. Fathers are comforted. Mothers behold the miraculous. Adult sons are reunited, and little girls rise from the dead – if not today, then on the Last Day.

Jesus was calm when the storm on the Sea of Galilee churned around him. Jesus also remains calm when death swirls all around him. And why shouldn’t he remain calm? He’s the expert. He’s the One who stared death in the face and shouted its defeat, “It is finished!” He’s the One who conquered death by dying on the Good Friday cross. He’s the One who crushed death with his resurrection on Easter Dawn.

In 252 A.D., St. Cyprian of Carthage wrote treatises and preached sermons encouraging Christians who were experiencing death all around them from a plague. Understandably, many were afraid to suffer and die. Cyprian has some powerful words for Christians looking at Death riding towards them – and facing it without fear. He chastises that only non-Christians should be afraid to die:

“Doubtless, let him fear to die, and only him, who, unborn of water and of the Spirit, is the property of hell-fire; let him fear to die, who is without title in the Cross and passion of Christ; let him fear to die, who is to pass from death here into the second death; let him fear to die, on whom at his going away from life, an eternal flame will lay pains that never cease; let him fear to die, on whom the longer delay

confers this boon, that his tortures and groans will begin later. Unbelievers should be afraid to die for they have nothing to look forward to after death. Instead, they should fear death for they will then suffer the second death.”

Cyprian is saying that only unbelievers have reason to fear death. Christians, though, should never fear death. Jesus promises, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last—the Living One. I was dead and, see, I am alive forever and ever! I also hold the keys of death and hell” (Revelation 1:17, 18).

Our annual trip to the tomb with the women every Easter morning is important for us as Christians. It is fitting that at the grave the angels tell the women: “Do not be afraid” (Matthew 28:5). It is fitting that the risen Jesus tells the women hurrying away from the tomb: “Do not be afraid” (Matthew 28:10). And it is fitting that Jesus reminds us repeatedly: “Do not be afraid. Only believe.”

There at that Easter tomb we hear a refrain that resounds almost 100 times in just the New Testament: “Do not be afraid.” The women had come out to the grave of their (supposedly) dead Master with a mixture of fear, powerlessness, and hopelessness. But suddenly they learned that their dear Lord was no longer dead. Just as he had promised, death held no power over him. In his saving power, they no longer had any reason to live in hopelessness and fear.

As they left the tomb, already the Easter message allowed the fear in their hearts to begin to mix with a great dawning joy. Then, as if the angelic messenger’s words had not been enough, Jesus suddenly stood before them. They heard their risen Lord’s lips repeat the refrain: “Do not be afraid.” His repetition displays the patient mercy of the Savior who knows how difficult it is to drive fear from the hearts even of his believers! His repetition reveals he will not abandon them to their clinging fears. He wants them to know that their lives – and their eternal lives – are in the hands of a crucified and risen Lord. There is nothing more to fear.

That same resurrection message still resounds to this day: “Do not be afraid. Only believe.” Easter proclaims that there is nothing in ancient times, current times or future times that can rightfully make us afraid –not plagues or pandemics or World Wars or anything else that brings death.

Even in a fallen world where Death rides its pale horse to haunt and hunt us down, Jesus still patiently reassures us: “Do not be afraid.” Death's back is broken. Satan has been stomped. The gates of Hades have been ripped off their hinges. Christ rides victorious on his white horse (Revelation 6:2). He has conquered and he continues to conquer. “Death is the last enemy to be done away with” (1 Corinthians 15:26), If Death is done, nothing else can win. If Death has been destroyed, then there is nothing else to fear.

Death lies broken and defeated. And now you get to decide whether the rest of your troubles, the worst of your fears, and the greatest of your anxieties are worth your worries.

Can the terrors of troubles outweigh trusting in the Almighty God?

Can the wrath of war overshadow the Lord of Armies?

Can the dread of demons live up to their demands?

Can the panic of pandemics be greater than Christ walking victoriously out of his grave?

That’s why we need to be reminded that we Christians alone have an answer to human fear. That answer is found in a little girls’ room. It is found at an empty tomb. It is found in a message that calms our fears at the cemetery. “Do not be afraid,” says the angel. “Do not be afraid,” says the risen Lord. “Do not be afraid,” says the pastor at the Christian funeral service.

You have no reason to ever be afraid again. As death comes calling, Jesus reminds you, “Don’t be afraid; only believe.” Amen.

For we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and bring us (together with you) into his presence (2 Corinthians 4:14). Amen.