Advent Sermon Series: "Your King Comes to YOU"
1st Sermon: Your King Comes to You in Holy Baptism
2nd Sermon: Your King Comes to YOU in Holy Absolution
3rd Sermon: Your King Comes to YOU in the Lord's Supper
Hebrews 10:1-4, 12-14
Matthew 26:26-29
Luther's Small Catechism - The Sacrament of the Altar
1st Sermon: Your King Comes to You in Holy Baptism
2nd Sermon: Your King Comes to YOU in Holy Absolution
3rd Sermon: Your King Comes to YOU in the Lord's Supper
Hebrews 10:1-4, 12-14
Matthew 26:26-29
Luther's Small Catechism - The Sacrament of the Altar
In the name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Our Lord says, “Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) Rest from your sins. Rest in your soul. Rest that refreshes and pours forth energy into your body.
Our Lord says, “Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) Rest from your sins. Rest in your soul. Rest that refreshes and pours forth energy into your body.
We’ve all felt bad because of sin. Not just in our heads or hearts. In our bodies too. Sin is not only done with the heart and mind, but especially with the body. Satan attacks us in our bodies. Most sins—like murder, adultery, theft—have definite impacts on the body. But that doesn’t mean that other sins don’t impact our bodies. Our sins cause us stress, worry, anxiety. These all have serious physical impacts. The burden of sin can be like carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders so that your shoulders and neck tighten up like a vise or cause headaches that seem to split reality in two. For others the burden of sin causes your stomach to sink, and roil as though you’ve eaten a poison that’s devouring you from within. Your bowels revolt against you. Our bodies react to sin in many different ways, but what is constant is that sin hurts us.
That’s what Jesus promises. Rest. Rest for your soul. Rest from the hounding of your wounded conscience. Rest from the impacts sin has on your body. Rest from all of it.
This rest is yours in His Supper. “For where there is the forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.” Luther called this holy meal “the medicine of immortality.” For the forgiveness of your sins, the freeing of your conscience, loosens up the grip sin has on your body, your mind, your shoulders, your bowels, etc. And more importantly this blessed meal reverses death in you. Death is done in eternally in the resurrection, but even here and now in your body this meal gives life. It reverses death. It gives life and salvation. Bodily health. Not that we should seek that as an end in itself. Clinging to our earthly life is just one more idol we worship. Repent and do not fear death for Christ has overcome it and you are in Him. But bodily health is good for your loving service of others.
That’s what Jesus promises. Rest. Rest for your soul. Rest from the hounding of your wounded conscience. Rest from the impacts sin has on your body. Rest from all of it.
This rest is yours in His Supper. “For where there is the forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.” Luther called this holy meal “the medicine of immortality.” For the forgiveness of your sins, the freeing of your conscience, loosens up the grip sin has on your body, your mind, your shoulders, your bowels, etc. And more importantly this blessed meal reverses death in you. Death is done in eternally in the resurrection, but even here and now in your body this meal gives life. It reverses death. It gives life and salvation. Bodily health. Not that we should seek that as an end in itself. Clinging to our earthly life is just one more idol we worship. Repent and do not fear death for Christ has overcome it and you are in Him. But bodily health is good for your loving service of others.
Long life gives you more time to pray for your children and grandchildren. Many of us realize that once we are gone no one on earth will be praying for them as regularly and as fervently as we do. Bodily health gives us the ability to love one another, to be a witness to the world, to pray for this world. We are the salt and light of the world. We preserve the world with our prayers and our presence, for God the Father is only delaying His Son’s return for the sake of His chosen ones who are in the world. And He keeps us in the world, for if we are not here, who will shine the light of His Son’s forgiveness into the world? How will others be saved if we are not here to tell them of Him?
These are tall tasks. How can we be the salt and light on earth if we are not made salty and luminous by our God? On our own we would sputter out and lose our saltiness. That’s where the Lord’s Supper comes in. In Baptism you are His child. In Absolution you are returned to the grace of your Baptism. In the Sacrament of the Altar you are given Jesus Himself to live inside you, to lighten you, to preserve you. He lives in you. He resides in you. He works in you. His incorruptible flesh takes root in you. His life blood flows through your veins.
These are tall tasks. How can we be the salt and light on earth if we are not made salty and luminous by our God? On our own we would sputter out and lose our saltiness. That’s where the Lord’s Supper comes in. In Baptism you are His child. In Absolution you are returned to the grace of your Baptism. In the Sacrament of the Altar you are given Jesus Himself to live inside you, to lighten you, to preserve you. He lives in you. He resides in you. He works in you. His incorruptible flesh takes root in you. His life blood flows through your veins.
This meal is Christ Himself coming to you in time. He who sits at God’s right hand comes to you in this meal. On the cross He conquered sin and death. Thus, His Father enthroned Him. He sits in Heaven waiting for the Day His Father will finish what He began on the cross by completely subjugating Satan, and all sin and death under his feet to crush them eternally. Until that Day He comes into you now in this Sacrament and crushes your enemies in you: sin, death, the devil.
Where He is, the devil can not be. Where He is there is life. Where He is sin is cast out, darkness is gone, for all is light.
Light can not overcome darkness. Darkness is only the absence of light. Wherever light is, darkness is obliterated. Where Jesus is, sin, Satan, and death are obliterated. Your King comes to you in this meal and His enemies flee.
Where He is, the devil can not be. Where He is there is life. Where He is sin is cast out, darkness is gone, for all is light.
Light can not overcome darkness. Darkness is only the absence of light. Wherever light is, darkness is obliterated. Where Jesus is, sin, Satan, and death are obliterated. Your King comes to you in this meal and His enemies flee.
He comes to you with the hosts of heaven. When you kneel at his altar to eat and drink Him into you you are not the only ones adoring Him. The angels, the archangels, the saints who have gone before are there. All those who have passed from death to life and overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb in this Sacrament are there with Him and us when we partake of Him. We commune with our God, and through Him with all who are in Him, both in heaven and on earth.
The Law of the Lord only reminds us of our sin. It has no power to give us life. But the Gospel, the New Testament in Jesus’ blood, this Sacrament gives us life. For in God’s wisdom it pleases God to come to you in physical things: water, spoken words, bread and wine. These things are the New Testament in His blood. By which He comes to you.
An incurable disease requires a cure. News of a cure gladdens the heart of the afflicted one but does not save. The cure must be placed on their tongue and ingested into your body to save you. Thanks be to God that He has given us the cure to our affliction of sin and death. He has baptized and claimed us as His own. He assures us of His love and our salvation in Absolution. And He gives us rest through this life-giving meal. In Him there is rest. Eternal rest and life to the full.
In +Jesus’ name, Amen.
The Law of the Lord only reminds us of our sin. It has no power to give us life. But the Gospel, the New Testament in Jesus’ blood, this Sacrament gives us life. For in God’s wisdom it pleases God to come to you in physical things: water, spoken words, bread and wine. These things are the New Testament in His blood. By which He comes to you.
An incurable disease requires a cure. News of a cure gladdens the heart of the afflicted one but does not save. The cure must be placed on their tongue and ingested into your body to save you. Thanks be to God that He has given us the cure to our affliction of sin and death. He has baptized and claimed us as His own. He assures us of His love and our salvation in Absolution. And He gives us rest through this life-giving meal. In Him there is rest. Eternal rest and life to the full.
In +Jesus’ name, Amen.
RSS Feed