Easter Tears, Easter Joy

            The first Easter Sunday began with tears – Mary Magdalene’s tears.  These were the worst kind – tears of hopelessness.  She had first met Jesus when she was full of the devil – seven demons in fact.  Since that time Jesus had been her teacher.  His Words filled her heart with something she had never had before – peace with God.  As she watched Jesus day after day – performing miracles, loving the unloved, giving hope to the hopeless – she began to wonder if He was the promised Messiah.  After all, He had changed her life.  She had watched Him change the lives of others.

            Now it seems that her hopes have died.  Mary Magdalene had returned to Jesus’ grave and it appears to have been robbed.  The stone is rolled away and the body of the Lord is gone.  That’s why the first Easter Sunday begins with tears.

            Who can live without hope? Not you.  Not me.  Not Mary Magdalene.  Fortunately, Mary saw hope through her tears.  Turns out the grave of Jesus wasn’t completely empty.

            When Mary looked closer, she found two angels in the tomb.  They weren’t shedding tears.  They weren’t disturbed at all.  One of them asked, “Woman, why are you crying?” Mary sobbed, “They have taken my Lord away and I don’t know where they have put Him?”

            Next to speak is someone that Mary doesn’t recognize, at least right away.  He wonders the same thing as the angels.  “Woman, why are your crying? Who is it you are looking for?”  Mary thinks this person is the gardener, the caretaker of the gravesite.  She says, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you put him and I will get him.”

            Poor Mary.  Maybe her eyes are so full of tears she is unable to clearly see the man standing before her.  But when she hears Him speak her name, “Mary,” she knows who it is.  In that moment, Easter tears are replaced by Easter joy.

            Mary’s joy on that first Easter morning is your Easter joy too.  When loss or disappointment or failure fill your eyes with tears, remember that Jesus can bring healing and restore hope.  There once was a Muslim who became a Christian.  When his friends asked him, “Why have you become a Christian?” he replied, “Well, it’s like this.  Suppose you were going down the road and suddenly the road forked in two directions and you didn’t know which way to go.  And there were two men – one dead and one alive.  Which one would you ask which way to go?

            There is no question as to which way Mary will go.  The same can go for you.  Remember when Jesus spoke Mary’s name.  Why not substitute your own name.  Jesus comes to you, in your weepy and weary moments and asks, “Why are you crying? I am alive!” And like Mary Magdalene, you see the resurrected Lord with eyes of faith.  He turns your tears into joy.  He lifts you from your disappointment and despair and restores your hope.  You can live again because Jesus lives.

            When we think about Easter tears, it is the words, “He is risen; He is risen indeed,” that can bring tears to the eyes of a believer.  We think of all Jesus suffered and endured and He did it all just for you and me.  A love like that can bring tears to our eyes.  But these are tears of joy, not sadness.  These are tears of hope, not despair.  It is most certainly true – Jesus is just as much alive today as He was on that first Easter morning.  Believe it my friends – Jesus is risen indeed!

Join us for Good Friday service

I'll be leading worship and preaching at the Good Friday service at Christ the Redeemer in Phoenix.  My message focuses on the seven words from the cross spoken by Jesus.  We will sing some of the great Lenten hymns of the church and watch a video which zeroes in on those last moments as Jesus hung on the cross, paying for our sins and winning our redemption.  As the church is darkened, we leave in silence, in order to contemplate the sacrifice that Jesus made for sinners.

The service begins at 6 pm.  The location is 8801 N. 43rd Avenue.  If you don't have a church home, come and join us tonight.

God be with you!

Luther on the 6th Petition of the Lord's Prayer

Here is a great quote from Luther's Large Catechism: Though I am now chaste, patient, kind and in firm faith, the devil will this very hour send such an arrow into my heart that I can scarcely stand.  For he is an enemy that never stops or becomes tired.  So when one temptation stops, there always arise others and fresh ones.

So there is no help or comfort to run here, take hold of the Lord's Prayer, and speak to God from the heart like this: "Dear Father, You have asked me to pray.  Don't let me fall because of temptations."

As usual, Luther is right on the money.  The apostle Peter compared the devil to a roaring lion, always on the prowl, never satisfied, always hungry, ever on the lookout for another soul to destroy.    

Will you include Luther's petition in your daily prayers? "Lord, don't let me fall because of temptations.  Amen." 

Thoughts about March Madness

Where to start...

The college game is exciting, much more so than the professional game.  It seemed that nearly every game I watched came down to the final minute, the final shot.  Unlike the NBA, where only a few teams really have a chance to win the championship, the parity in the collage game allows that plenty of teams had a chance to win the trophy.  The eventual winner, University of Connecticut, was counted out for dead, so to speak, midway through their season.  By tournament time they appeared unbeatable...and they were!

These players are really good.  The level of play in college basketball makes the game extra exciting.  I've lost track of the number of clutch shots that were made during the tournemenet.  Many of the players were making three point shots from NBA distance.  In many games a 12 point lead wasn't enough.  A few stops, a barrage of three-pointers, and a trailing team could move into the lead.  And the joy and excitement of the players was contiguous.

Is there a classier broadcaster than Jim Nantz? He is often overlooked because of easy going nature and his "Hello friends," greeting.  Nantz doesn't seem as clever as Joe Buck or as knowledgeable as Al Michaels.  But the man is a pro.  He lets the game take centerstage but is right there with the right call at the right time, all designed to help us enjoy what we're watching.  He's retiring from calling college basketball and he'll be missed.  But tune in to CBS this weekend where the master broadcaster will be calling the Masters.  Tune in early so that you don't miss his "Hello Friends," greeting. It's just as much a part of Masters weekend as the azaleas.

This is how much Jesus loves you

So come to His table, listening only to His words and receiving what He gives.  All your doing doesn't count against you anymore.  There is none of you, none of your doing outside of Jesus forgiveness.  Nothing can separate you from Him, for He has borne it all and answered for it in your place.  The Lord invites you to His table, family and fellowship to share all His happy good.  This is how much He loves you.  And by this Meal the Lord brings you on your way to that glad feast that is the feast of the Lamb with all His saints.

Saints - that is you and me and all His disciples, the many accounted righteous, whose iniquities He bore, whose chastisement He took, those whom He makes whole by what He did as the sacrifice for sin and by what He gives us to share together at His table.  Amen.

Selected Sermons of Normal Nagel - page 112 

God Himself Will Fight For You

 

              For the past few weeks my daily morning Bible study has focused on that great Old Testament hero, Moses.  My daily reading has impressed upon me again the humility and faith that guided Moses as led God’s chosen people, the Israelites.  Given all of his experiences, Moses could have written a book.  In fact, he wrote five of them!  In reading Deuteronomy, we see Moses getting ready to turn his leadership role over to a new man.  Joshua was God’s chosen servant, the one who would lead the Israelites to the promised land of Canaan.

              Normally a job promotion is a cause for celebration.  However, one could understand if Joshua was feeling anxious about this new assignment.  Joshua knew all too well about the “stiff-necked” ways of the people.  He listened as they complained about Moses’ leadership abilities and Joshua watched as the people ignored God’s commands and, instead, led disobedient lives.  It would be no picnic dealing with this crowd.

              Joshua also knew that there would be opposition as the Israelites settled into Canaan.  Battles would be fought against powerful enemies.  Would Joshua be able to count on the support of the people in the heat of battle?  Would they be able to conquer their foes and enjoy the land God had given them?

              Moses and Joshua meet.  It is time for the transfer of power.  Was Joshua showing signs of anxiety? Was doubt written all over his face?  We don’t really know.  But listen to the reassuring words that Moses offers to the new leader of the Israelites: “You have seen with your own eyes,” Moses says, “all that the Lord your God has done to these two kings.  The Lord will do the same to all the kingdoms over there where you are going.  Do not be afraid of them; the Lord your God Himself will fight for you.”

              Is this a word that you need today?  Do you find yourself feeling anxious about the future?  Afraid that you’re going to lose your job?  Afraid that you’ll never find another job?  Or perhaps you face a different trouble?  Is the temptation to eat too much or spend too much or gossip too much getting the best of you?

              Or maybe your concern is health – yours or someone else’s health.  Maybe you’re afraid that the diagnosis or treatment is more than you can bear.  Perhaps your fearful that the medical situation you face will leave you facing life without hope.

              The words from Moses to Joshua were designed to replace fear with faith.  Let them do the same for you.  This is God’s personal word to you this week: The Lord your God Himself will fight for you!

              Think about it – Jesus has already fought for you and won!  He lived an obedient life under the Law – for you!  Satan came after the Lord with his weapons of eternal mass destruction.  But Jesus would not give up the fight.  His love for you led Him to the cross.  His cry, “It is finished,” was His victory shout!  Jesus paid for your sins.  He suffered your punishment.  In faith you are free to love God and to serve Him with joy.  You can do this with confidence because the Lord your God Himself will fight for you!

              And God continues the fight.  With His gifts of Word and Baptism and Communion God powerfully calms your fears and restores your hope.  You have seen with your own eyes how He has fought and cared for you in the past.  Your Lord won’t stop now!  Let this truth replace your fear with a renewed faith in your Savior God.  I’ll say it again: The Lord your God Himself will fight for you!

The Word of Undoubting Faith

Here's Luther from the Large Catechism:

But all depends upon this, that we learn also to say "Amen."  This means that we do not doubt that our prayer is surely heard and that what we pray shall be done (2 Corinthians 1:20).  This is nothing else than the word of undoubting faith, which does not pray on a dare but knows that God does not lie to him (Titus 1:2).  For He has promised to grant it.  Therefore, where there is no such faith, there cannot be true prayer either.