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Midweek Lenten Service
February 24, 2021

“‘Follow Me’: The Call to Discipleship” (Mark 1:14-20)

Today we begin a series of four messages based on the four “Follow me” sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of Mark. “Follow me”: In saying those words, Jesus was calling people back then to be his disciples. “Follow me”: Jesus is still saying those words to us today. He is calling us to be his disciples. So hear him now, as Jesus says to each one of us: “Follow Me.”

Our first entry in this midweek series has to do precisely with “The Call to Discipleship.” We hear it in our text today from Mark chapter 1. And I want us to consider three points about this call to discipleship: 1) The call comes from Jesus; 2) The call is surprisingly simple; and 3) The call is profoundly transformative.

First point: The call comes from Jesus. By that I mean, the initiative lies with him, not with us. Notice how the direction of the call goes: Jesus was walking alongside the Sea of Galilee, and he sees Simon and Andrew, and he says to them, “Follow me.” Then, going on a little father, Jesus sees James and John, and he calls them.

Notice, the direction is all from Jesus to the ones he calls. Jesus was walking along and he found them. He saw them when they were just going about their business, not looking for him. They didn’t do one darn thing to merit or earn his attention. There was nothing about them that was so special. They didn’t seek Jesus; he sought them. And he said to them, he called them, “Follow me.” It was all at his initiative.

The late theologian Martin Franzmann writes: “Jesus takes the initiative and calls the disciples. In many respects the circle of disciples gathered about Jesus was no startling novelty in first-century Palestine: in the terminology of ‘rabbi’ and ‘disciple,’ in the fact that they ‘followed’ their Master. . . . But in this point, in the genesis of the circle of disciples, there is a striking difference. In rabbinical circles the initiative in discipleship lay with the disciple. ‘Take to yourself a teacher,’ is the advice given to the aspiring disciple by a Jewish teacher. . . . We have no record of a call issued by a Jewish rabbi to a disciple in all rabbinic literature. . . . What in Judaism was the pious duty of the disciple is here the sovereign act of the Master. . . . Jesus reserves the initiative for Himself.”

As with those first disciples, so it is with us. We didn’t seek him. He sought us, he found us, and called us to be his own. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. That was us. We were lost, lost in sin and darkness, and we didn’t even know it. Like those first disciples, like all the lost people in the world today, we were just going about our everyday business, casting our nets, mending our nets. We could mend our nets, but we could not mend our relationship with God. That net was torn beyond repair, and we couldn’t fix it. That’s what it means to be lost, lost in sin and heading toward death, eternal death apart from God.

But then Jesus comes walking. He seeks us, he sees us, he finds us where we are. He says to each one of us, “Follow me.” And those are words of life and forgiveness, because that’s what we find when we follow him. Jesus calls us by the gospel. He called you in your baptism, when you didn’t do a darn thing to choose him. You were dead in sin, and he brought you to life. You didn’t decide to follow Jesus. He decided to call you.

The call comes from Jesus. The initiative lies all with him, not with us. Jesus chooses us, we don’t choose him. The disciples Jesus called in our text today–Jesus will tell these same disciples later on, in John 15: “You did not choose me, but I chose you.” It’s like we sang in our opening hymn: “Lord, ’tis not that I did choose Thee; that, I know, could never be; for this heart would still refuse Thee had Thy grace not chosen me.

So the first point: The call comes from Jesus. The second point: The call is surprisingly simple. By that I mean, it is surprisingly simple in its content. It’s just Jesus saying, “Follow me.”

Suppose I wanted you to get from here to, say, the seminary in St. Louis. There are a couple of ways I could give you directions. Here is one way: “OK, leave the church and take the streets and the turns you need to get onto Highway 67. Take Highway 67 north till you get to I-55. Go north on I-55 x number of miles till you get to I-44 in St. Louis. Take I-44 west till you get to Hampton. Take Hampton north till you get to I-64 west (also known as Highway 40). Stay in the right line, because the next exit is for Clayton Rd. Go west on Clayton Road just a couple of stoplights till you get to Seminary Place. Take a right and straight ahead of you is Concordia Seminary. You got all that?”

OK, that’s one way to do it. But here’s another way: Get in your car and follow me. That’s it. Just, follow me and you’ll get there. No complicated formulas. Pretty simple. Follow me. Well, that’s kind of what Jesus does when he calls us to be his disciples. The call is surprisingly simple in its content: “Follow me.” That’s it. Follow Jesus, come after him. Not a lot of complicated directions to remember. Just one person to follow. Follow Jesus, keep on following him, and you will get to where you need to go.

To be sure, the disciples will find out more, a whole lot more, along the way. They will grow in their understanding of what all is involved in being Christ’s disciples. But at its heart, at its core, the call is essentially and surprisingly simple: Follow Jesus. Stick close to him. He is the way. And he’ll show you the way, as you follow him.

The call is to follow Jesus. To follow him in faith, to stick close to him. It means being where he continues to speak to us. That’s in the church. Through Word and Sacrament, Jesus is here, speaking to us, leading us onward. We follow Jesus through the church year: from his birth; through his public ministry; to his suffering, death, and resurrection; and to his return at the last day.

Discipleship is very personal. It means being attached to Jesus. He leads, and we follow. Jesus takes us where he is going. He will lead us through our daily lives. He will lead us to our neighbor in need. He will lead us all the way to our home in heaven.

Which leads us to our third point: The call to discipleship is profoundly transformative. By that I mean, it is transformative in its effects. The call changes things, profoundly. It changes us, profoundly. It changes the direction of our life.

Look at what happened with the disciples. Simon and Andrew, James and John, were fishermen. Then Jesus comes and calls them: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” And immediately they left their nets and their boats behind, and they follow Jesus. Now not all of us are called to be “fishers of men” like those guys were. We’re not all called into the pastoral ministry. But we all are called to be disciples, to follow Jesus. And that will indeed change things for us.

It changes things for us, in that it gives us life! We were dead, but now we are alive, in Christ! For to follow Jesus is to go with him to the cross, where he suffers and dies for us poor sinners. By his holy precious blood, all our sins are forgiven, and we are washed clean. The net is mended, that torn net of our relationship with God. Jesus mended it for us, he made it right. Now we have life, we have everlasting life. This is the most profound change that comes with following Jesus. It changes the course of our eternity.

And it changes things now in our daily life. Now we are disciples of Jesus. Our life takes a new direction. Now we have something more to do in our lives than just fishing. The call to discipleship transforms our daily life, even if we stay in our current occupation. Our vocation, our calling, is transformed. It “changes,” even if it doesn’t “change.” What I mean is, oh, you may still be a commercial fisherman, or an auto mechanic, or a retiree, or a mom, but now your life is different, even if outwardly it looks the same.

Now you know you can serve God and serve your neighbor as a mechanic or a mom, and your work is accepted as good work before God. That’s because it is cleansed by Christ and serves as a channel of God’s love and blessing toward others. That’s the new and different direction our lives take as Jesus’ disciples. We don’t need our works to climb our way up to God. No, Christ’s completed work gets us there. Now we are free to give away our good works to our neighbor who needs them. God’s love flows through us to others.

My friends, today we have heard “The Call to Discipleship.” Three points: 1) The call comes from Jesus. The initiative lies with him. 2) The call is surprisingly simple in its content. It’s simply Jesus calling us to follow him. 3) And that call is profoundly transformative in its effects. It changes our lives now and gives us a life that will last forever. So, my fellow disciples, keep on listening during this Lenten season, as Jesus continues to call us, day after day, saying, “Follow me.”

First Sunday in Lent
February 21, 2021

“In the Wilderness” (Mark 1:9-15)

Today is the First Sunday in Lent, and every year on this Sunday the Holy Gospel is an account of Christ’s temptation in the wilderness. This year the reading comes from Mark’s gospel. It’s the shortest, and the most compact and condensed, of the three accounts, but still it has much to speak to us today. So now let’s join our Lord “In the Wilderness.”

As I say, this account is very brief, just two verses, as follows: “The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.”

Now this text comes in a context. In the verses right before the temptation of Christ, we have the baptism of our Lord. There Jesus is baptized in the Jordan, the Spirit descends on him to anoint him as the Christ, and the Father’s voice says to Jesus, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

OK, there you go. Everything sounds great. Empowered by the Spirit, approved by the Father, Jesus is ready to go! There’s a lot of preaching, teaching, and healing to do, so let’s get on with it. But wait! Something happens first. Something you wouldn’t expect. Mark tells us: “The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.”

Now that’s odd. You wouldn’t have predicted that. The same Holy Spirit who had just descended on Jesus in the form of a dove–the Spirit now drives him out into the wilderness. In fact, to say the Spirit “drove” him out is a little mild. The Greek text actually says, the Spirit “throws” him out into the wilderness, “casts” him out. Jesus is literally an outcast, thrown out into the wild. There’s kind of a violent feel to it. Jesus will “cast out” unclean spirits from people. Now the same word is used for when the Holy Spirit “casts out” Jesus. From the water, out into the wilderness.

And this is going to be no brief walk in the park. No, our text continues: “And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan.” Father in heaven, is this any way for you to treat your Son? O God, you just said to Jesus, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” Really? Is this how you show your love? Is this how you show your pleasure? Letting Jesus languish out there in the wilderness for forty whole days? Isn’t that a bit extreme? And to be tempted by Satan, as well! Why, Father, why?

We can indeed ask that “why” question about Jesus. After all, the Father was well pleased with Jesus. He never did anything wrong. But sometimes, don’t you think, we ask that “why” question about ourselves. Why is God letting me suffer out here in this wilderness? Why do I have to endure the temptations of Satan? Couldn’t God just take it all away? Snap his fingers, and I could just coast through life, with no problems. Walking down Easy Street. Instead, I’m out here in the wilderness for what seems like forty years now.

Oh, forty years! Now that reminds me of something, something I read in the Bible. Forty years, in the wilderness. That’s what Israel went through. Israel had sinned against God, grumbling against him. Not trusting his promise to bring them into the promised land. Not trusting God to sustain them along the way. Israel was tempted by Satan, in the wilderness, for forty years, and they failed the test. But now here comes Jesus, out there also in the wilderness, for forty days. Will he succeed where Israel failed? Yes, big time!

But how about you and me, when we are tempted, when we are tested? Do we always come through with flying colors? No way. So often we fall flat on our face. If we’re going to make it to the promised land, it won’t be by our own efforts. It won’t be because of our own strength or piety. We need something more than what we’ve got on our own.

In short, we need Jesus. He is the one who has passed the test. We need him pinch-hitting for us. Jesus is our champion. He took on Satan on the devil’s home turf, and he won the day. It was exhausting, it was grueling, but Jesus won the day. He won the forty days.

Now notice something about those forty days, and it’s a detail we find only in Mark. It says, “And he was with the wild animals.” Well, I guess if you’re going to spend forty days in the wilderness, you might encounter some wild animals. And wild animals, out in a wilderness, would pose some danger. These are untamed creatures, wild beasts, the sort that do harm to human beings.

But Jesus is out there with them, for almost a month and a half. Like Daniel in the lions’ den, Jesus’ life is preserved. Unlike Adam and Eve in the garden, where a serpent tempted them and they failed, Jesus overcomes the temptations of Satan. As the psalmist foretold of Christ: “You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.”

“He was with the wild animals.” What else is this telling us? For one thing, it reminds us of when man was first with the animals, back in the garden of Eden. At that time, before the fall into sin, animals posed no danger. However, after the fall into sin, humans are not safe in the midst of wild beasts.

But Jesus is. Indeed, Jesus is the one who will usher in the peaceable kingdom, prophesied in Isaiah 11, where man and beast will live together in harmony without harm. In Isaiah 35, the prophet says that when God’s people return from exile, there will be a highway in the wilderness, where no lion or any ravenous beast will pose a threat. And in Isaiah 43, the Lord says of the new thing he will do: “I will make a way in the wilderness,” and “the wild beasts will honor me.”

So Jesus was with the wild animals, yet he was preserved from danger. Like it was in the garden of Eden. In Christ, paradise will be restored, better than ever. God will turn the wilderness into a garden. And that’s where you and I will be living for a good eternity.

“And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.” And, dear friends, God sends his ministering angels to watch over you and care for you. We live among wild beasts, so to speak, whether literal or figurative. The early Christians literally were thrown to the wild beasts. So for them to know that Jesus was right there with them must have been a great comfort. God knows what his people are going through. And he sends his angels to help us, even when we’re not aware that they are watching over us.

So Jesus made it through the forty days. But there are more days to come, days that will take Jesus on a long march to the cross. There Jesus will defeat the devil once again. Decisively. Once and for all. Once and for you! For all of your failures in the wilderness, for all your grumbling against God, for all the temptations that Satan has beaten you on–for all that, Jesus paid the price that secures your release. You are forgiven. You are free.

God sent his Son, his only Son, Jesus, whom he loved, and he did not withhold him from offering up the perfect sacrifice. The wood was laid on Jesus’ back and he carried it–your sins were laid on his back and he carried them–and he himself was laid on the altar of the cross. Jesus was the ram caught in the thicket. He was the substitute that the Lord provided, so that now you are spared. The Lord will provide. God will provide for himself the lamb for the offering. As it is said to this day: Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

The tempting in the wilderness was a training, in a way, for Jesus to endure all the way to the cross. Jesus suffered as you suffer. He was tempted as you are tempted. He knows what you’re going through. Hebrews says: “He had to be made like his brothers”–that’s us–“in every respect.” “For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

So, brothers and sisters in Christ, turn to Jesus when you are weak, when you are suffering, when you are being tempted by Satan. Jesus knows what it’s like to be out there in the wilderness. You may be out in a wilderness of your own. But Jesus is out there with you. God’s holy angels are watching over you. And Jesus will lead you out of the wilderness of this world and into the promised land of heaven.

Let us pray: O Lord God, You led Your ancient people through the wilderness and brought them to the promised land. Guide the people of Your Church that following our Savior we may walk through the wilderness of this world toward the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

The Transfiguration of Our Lord
Sunday, February 14, 2021

“Christ’s Transfiguration and Our Hope of Glory” (Mark 9:2-9)

O wondrous type! O vision fair
Of glory that the Church may share,
Which Christ upon the mountain shows,
Where brighter than the sun He glows!

So we just sang, and so we will now hear, under the theme, “Christ’s Transfiguration and Our Hope of Glory.”

Our text is the reading from Mark chapter 9. It begins: “And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them.”

Jesus was transfigured, that is, his form was changed. His face shone. His clothes became radiant. As the Son of God from eternity, Christ always possessed heavenly divine glory. But when he came in the flesh, during the days of his humiliation, Christ Jesus emptied himself and made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant. His glory was put under wraps. But now, in this moment on the mountain, Christ’s glory shines forth. And these disciples get a glimpse of it.

This is a preview of the glorification of Christ that began with his resurrection. For at that time the disciples will see Jesus again in a glorified state, when he appears to them having risen from the dead. Our text even says that Jesus “charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” And so, the transfiguration points us ahead to Easter and Christ’s resurrection.

The transfiguration is a preview of Christ’s resurrection, and thus of our resurrection also. For you and I were joined to Jesus in Holy Baptism. There, at our baptism, the Father, who said of Jesus, “This is my beloved Son”–in Holy Baptism, the Father takes us as his own dear children. In baptism, God adopted us by grace and made us co-heirs with Christ of his glory. Now we have an inheritance waiting for us in heaven. At the transfiguration, Christ’s clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no fuller on earth could bleach them. So, traditionally, those being baptized wear a white christening garment, to show that they are being clothed with the robe of Christ’s righteousness. Your sins, though they were scarlet, became as white as snow. No one on earth can cleanse you that pure and holy. Only God can. And so, just as Christ’s transfiguration points ahead to his resurrection, so your baptism, when you were connected to Christ–that is your personal transfiguration, and it points ahead to your own resurrection. This is the hope of glory you have right now. You are a baptized child of God, with the sure hope of the resurrection. So our first point today is that Christ’s transfiguration is a preview both of his own glory when he rises from the dead and of the glory we will share when Christ raises us from the dead.

Secondly, notice that Moses and Elijah show up: “And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.” Now that is something, isn’t it? Think of it: Moses died some 1400 years earlier. Elijah actually did not die; he was taken up into heaven in a chariot of fire. But that was almost 900 years earlier. And now, they both are here. with Jesus, on the mountain, seen by three witnesses, Peter, James, and John. And Moses and Elijah were not just some sort of hologram or hallucination. No, they were really there, actually present. Now what does this tell us about life after death, about eternal life? That it’s real! Death was not the end for Moses. And for Elijah, death was not even there for him in the first place. Instead, life, life in heavenly glory, is the reality that all of God’s people have to look forward to. This is God’s promise, and it is attested to by the presence of these two men of God, Moses and Elijah.

Furthermore, Elijah and Moses are standing there with Jesus, but then after a while the disciples look up and see Jesus only. This shows that the promise of eternal life is focused on and fulfilled by none other than our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Moses and Elijah are there, alive and in person, but they’re there because of Jesus.

And so it will be for you, my friends! Death will not be the end for you. Death will not separate you from your Savior. Just as Moses and Elijah were with Jesus there on the mountain, so also you, when you die, will be with the Lord in paradise. Life everlasting is in store for you. This is our hope, this is our sure and certain hope, the hope of glory.

But now, third, that glory must come through the cross. Notice, at the end of our text it says, “until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” This means that first he must die. You know, in all the gospel accounts, the transfiguration takes place in the context of Christ first predicting his passion, that is, his suffering and death. So here in Mark, in the verses right before our text, it says: “And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he said this plainly.” And then a little after our text, shortly after the transfiguration, Jesus will tell them again: “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.” The disciples didn’t want to hear this talk of their master getting killed. It didn’t fit their idea of what should happen to the Messiah. Peter even tried to argue Jesus out of his going to the cross. But here at the transfiguration, the Father’s voice affirms what Jesus says about his suffering. The Father says, “Listen to him.”

Now why is this? Why must the glory come through the cross? Because there is no other way for Jesus to fulfill his mission of redeeming mankind. Jesus came to save sinners. You and I would be lost forever without God’s forgiveness. But Christ came to win our forgiveness, to do the job we could not do. And it required his death to accomplish this. The wages of sin is death. That is what we have earned by our rebellion against God. Our mountain of misdeeds, the selfishness and lack of love we all manifest on a daily basis–these sins testify against us. Now multiply that by a few billion, and you see all the sin of humanity that had to be covered and atoned for. If sin is to be forgiven, if the judgment of death is to be satisfied, there is only one way for all that sin and death to be taken care of. It is through the death of Jesus Christ, God’s only Son. His holy precious blood is of such infinite worth, that when he sheds his blood on the cross, when he offers his life as the sacrifice for sin, this is how there is forgiveness: Because Christ has atoned for all the sins of the whole world. It’s done, it is finished, it’s all taken care of. Without the cross, there would be no hope of glory. There would only be the grim prospect of eternal death and damnation. But with the cross of Christ, there is forgiveness. And with forgiveness–where sin is taken care of, there death is taken care of also, and life will reign in its place.

The glory must come through the cross. We even portray that truth in the church year. Today is the last Sunday in the Epiphany season, which means it’s the Sunday right before Lent. And on this Sunday, the Holy Gospel always is an account of the transfiguration. That’s a good choice, as we move from Epiphany to Lent. For in the gospels themselves, the transfiguration serves as a pivot point in Christ’s ministry–from here on out Jesus is heading to the cross. So likewise in the church year, this Sunday mirrors that movement. The Transfiguration of Our Lord serves as the pivot point between Epiphany and Lent: The Epiphany season manifests Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. Lent then tracks Jesus on his journey to Jerusalem for his suffering and death. Today, Transfiguration Sunday, serves as the bridge that connects the two.

Today, as we conclude the Epiphany season, we sing our Alleluias and our Glorias, lots of them, in glorious, exuberant praise. But at the end of this service, we will say farewell to Alleluia–for a little while, until Easter comes. Lent will be a time for more subdued reflection and repentance. We’ll go on that journey with Jesus to Jerusalem. And so, after today, we will put away the glistening white and put on the penitential purple. The glory will come through the cross.

But today, for one last time, we get to sing our Alleluias. It’s still Epiphany. And what have we seen this Epiphany season? From the visit of the Wise Men; to the Baptism of our Lord, where the Father’s voice first declared, “You are my beloved Son”; through the preaching, teaching, and healing ministry of Jesus–during this Epiphany season, Jesus has been manifesting his glory as the Son of God. From the shining star of Bethlehem to now our shining Lord on the Mount of Transfiguration, we have been seeing who this Jesus is.

And so, ’tis indeed good, Lord, to be here, here on the mountain with Peter, James, and John. Why? Today we have seen three reasons. One, Christ’s transfiguration points us ahead to his resurrection, and thus to our own resurrection, for we are joined to Jesus in baptism. Two, the presence of Moses and Elijah bears testimony to life beyond the grave, a hope focused in and fulfilled by Jesus only. And three, this glory comes through the cross. There Christ made atonement for our sins and suffered death for us, thereby winning our forgiveness and assuring us of the eternal life that is our hope of glory.

In Christ’s transfiguration, then, we are given a glimpse of our hope of glory. And this sure hope will give you the strength you need to carry on. Because when we come down from the mountain and we’re going through the plain, when we experience the tough and perplexing places of life, this hope of glory will help us to keep on keeping on.

Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany
February 7, 2021

“The Jesus Vaccine” (Mark 1:29-39)

Have you gotten the vaccine yet? That’s a question that’s been going “viral” lately (yes, pun intended). Have you gotten the vaccine? Everybody’s talking about that, because the vaccine is supposed to protect you from the virus–the Coronavirus, Covid-19. And so, people are lining up at the various vaccination sites in order to get the shot–or two shots, as the case may be. There are a couple of different vaccines available. The two I’ve heard about are the Moderna vaccine and the Pfizer. And so far, the results sound encouraging. The numbers I heard Friday are these: The Moderna vaccine is currently posting a 94.1% efficacy rate and the Pfizer vaccine is showing an efficacy rate of more than 90%.

But, dear friends, those results are not nearly good enough. Because that still means that anywhere from six to ten percent of people who get the shot get the virus anyway. And if the Coronavirus doesn’t get you, something else will. So far, I have not heard of any vaccine that can prevent you from succumbing to something. As a famous surgeon general once said, “We all will probably die with something sooner or later.”

Well, actually, let me take that back. I do know of something that can and will prevent you from dying. And I’m here today to tell you about it. It’s called “The Jesus Vaccine.” The Jesus vaccine. It’s not 90% effective. It’s not 94.1% effective. No, the Jesus vaccine is 100% effective, and against all causes of death, Coronavirus included.

The Jesus vaccine. Now first let me tell you what I do not mean by that. When I was thinking about this the other day, I googled the words “Jesus” and “vaccine.” And what I discovered was that there were some people who were protesting the Covid vaccine, saying that they don’t need it, because, as their signs said, “Jesus is my vaccine.” Now that is taking it too far. I’m not saying that everybody has to get the vaccine. I’m not saying that it’s wrong to have some hesitancy or reluctance to get it. I understand that.

But these protesters saying, “Jesus is my vaccine”–it’s like they’re suggesting that just because they are Christians, they’re not going to get the virus. And that’s wrong. Being a Christian does not make you immune from disease. In fact, I know of a number of Christians, even fellow pastors, who have died from the Coronavirus. Jesus did not prevent them from getting the virus and dying from it. It’s not that they didn’t have enough faith. They did have faith. But they’re human, and humans get diseases and die. That’s a fact.

So how can I say that “the Jesus vaccine” is 100% effective and will keep you from dying? Here’s how. Because Jesus has the desire to heal you from disease and death, and he has the power to do it. We see that in our text today from Mark chapter 1. “Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her.” Or later that day: “That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many who were sick with various diseases.” So, Jesus certainly has the desire to heal and the power to do it.

Then how come not all people who would like Jesus to heal them get healed? Well, not all people back then got healed either. There were plenty of Israelites back in Jesus’ time who did not get healed. Maybe they had no one to bring them to the door where Jesus was doing his thing. Maybe they were living in a town that Jesus did not get around to visiting. Or maybe, like Simon’s mother-in-law, who got healed of a fever that day, later on she got sick with something else, and then she died. The point being, all those people that Jesus healed still ended up dying.

So why did Jesus do those healings, then, if they weren’t going to last? What Jesus was doing was demonstrating the final outcome of the mission he came to accomplish. The journey Jesus was taking, the ministry he was carrying out, will result in the perfect healing of both body and soul. These physical healings were an advance installment of the final fulfillment. They were a sneak preview, of sorts, of what is to come. Therefore, Jesus didn’t have to heal every single person who was sick at the time. Nor does he need to do a miraculous healing for every Christian who is sick today. Jesus has done enough healings, though, the ones recorded in the Bible, to show that this is what is in store in for all who trust in him. Jesus came to announce and usher in the kingdom of heaven, and in this kingdom there will be complete and total healing, in body and soul, for all believers.

Disease and death, physical maladies, sickness and sorrow–these are alien intruders in the paradise that God created. These ailments and illnesses are the result of our sin, humanity’s rebellion against our Creator. They are part of the curse that we brought upon ourselves for disobeying God’s command. Man was not meant to die. But all of creation–including our bodies–has been damaged by our fall into sin.

This is why we get sick and die. Because of our sin. Oh, not that this specific sickness is directly the result of that particular sin. But just generally, we get sick and die because we are sinners, living in a fallen world.

And if Christ had not come, if we were just left to our own devices, we would die eternally. And that’s the Big Death. To perish eternally under God’s condemnation and judgment, to suffer God’s wrath and punishment–that’s what you and I were headed for. And justifiably so. For you and I have sinned against God. We have broken his commandments, repeatedly. And what we have earned by our sins is death. Death with a big D.

But Jesus came to remedy that. He came to get to the root of the problem. We could not rescue ourselves. Only Christ could. Only Christ Jesus, the very Son of God come in the flesh, could do that big job. And he has.

What was needed was a man who would keep God’s commandments. Jesus got that right. What was needed was a man who would take the punishment for our sin. Jesus did that by dying on the cross. And because he is God’s own Son, what Jesus did is big enough to cover all sinners. His righteousness gets placed in our account. Our sins are cleansed by his holy blood. By his holy wounds, we are healed. By his resurrection, we are assured that we too will rise from the dead.

This is why I can say that Jesus will keep you from dying eternally. Because the Big Death has already been taken care of. Only the small death remains. This is why Jesus could say: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”

So, unless Jesus comes back first, you and I will die. It may not be a virus, but something will cause us to breathe our last. But that death will not be the big one. You and I who trust in Christ will never die that death. Instead, we will enjoy everlasting life.

The fact that Jesus came to heal our bodies and not just our souls is vouchsafed to us in the sacraments. The sacraments are God’s way of telling us that he has redeemed our physical bodies. The sacraments apply God’s healing mercy to our mortal bodies.

Luther gets at this in the Large Catechism. About the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, he says: “‘I am baptized. And if I am baptized, it is promised to me that I shall be saved and have eternal life, both in soul and body.’ For that is the reason why these two things are done in Baptism: the body–which can grasp nothing but the water–is sprinkled and, in addition, the Word is spoken for the soul to grasp. Now, since both, the water and the Word, make one Baptism, therefore, body and soul must be saved and live forever.”

Likewise, Luther writes about the bodily benefit of the Sacrament of the Altar. He says: “It will cure you and give you life both in soul and in body. For where the soul has recovered, the body also is relieved.” Friends, today, when you come up to this altar, you will be taking into your body the life-giving body and blood of your Savior. And this is why the early church father St. Ignatius could call the Lord’s Supper “the medicine of immortality,” the antidote against dying, “that we should live forever in Christ Jesus.”

And this is why today I am calling this sacrament “the Jesus vaccine.” In fact, the whole gospel is. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the great Physician of body and soul. Take the Jesus vaccine, the gospel medicine, and no virus, no disease, no death will be able to shut you out from eternal life. Have you gotten the vaccine? The Jesus vaccine, I mean. With this one, the efficacy rate is 100%.

Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany
January 31, 2021

“Exclamation Mark: Immediately! Authority! Astonished!” (Mark 1:21-28)

The featured gospel in our lectionary this year is the Gospel according to St. Mark. While all four gospels are telling the same story, the story of Jesus, and all four are inspired by the Holy Spirit, each gospel writer tells the Jesus story in his own individual style. And what all readers notice about the way Mark tells the story is the sense of urgency and action he conveys and how the story moves along. Jesus is thrown into conflict right away. We move from one event to another in rapid fashion. Jesus does amazing, astonishing things, displaying powerful authority in his words and his works. Marks tells the story in bold, dramatic fashion. So much so that today I think I’ll call him “Exclamation Mark.” And what jumps out at me in our reading from Mark today are three words that I think could use an exclamation mark, namely, “Immediately! Authority! Astonished!”

Immediately! Authority! Astonished! The pace, the power, and the impact. That’s what we see in the reading today from Mark chapter 1. And each word has meaning for you.

This reading today takes place right at the beginning of Mark’s gospel. Someone has described Mark’s distinctive style like this: “Mark is the gospel of breathless excitement. The narrative is noted for its rapid movement between scenes and for an urgent tone through the miracles and journeys of Jesus.” And we’ve already seen that so far in the verses preceding our text. At the baptism of Jesus: “And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.” At the temptation of Jesus: “The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.” When Jesus calls the fishermen Simon and Andrew to be his disciples: “And immediately they left their nets and followed him.” Likewise with James and John: “And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.”

Now did you hear a certain word jumping out at you as I read that? That’s right, it’s the word “immediately.” Mark uses that word a lot! Four times in the first twenty verses! And three more times in the eight verses of our text today. Bing! Bang! Bong! Immediately Jesus does this! Immediately he does that! Immediately this happens. Immediately that. Rapid movement. Action. Urgency.

The word that Mark likes so much is the Greek word euthys. In the whole New Testament, the word euthys occurs a total of fifty-some times. But over forty of those occurrences are found in Mark! And most of those are in the first seven chapters. So it really stands out here at the start of Jesus’ public ministry. Usually the word is translated as “immediately,” sometimes as “at once.” The effect is to move the story along with some urgency.

So here we find the term three times in our text today: “And immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching.” “And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit.” “And at once his fame spread everywhere.”

Now what is immediately, at once, happening here? Jesus is being launched into his messianic ministry right away. And with that, he is being thrown into conflict right away. Immediately, at once, we see Jesus being confronted with forces opposed to him and his coming. And this sets the tone for the gospel as a whole. Tension, conflict, will mark Jesus’ ministry. Whether it is from unclean spirits or from human opponents, Jesus will meet with resistance all the way to the cross. But Jesus is determined to carry out his ministry and fulfill his mission, no matter how fierce the opposition. And all the “immediately’s” in Mark’s gospel emphasize Christ’s determination to accomplish his purpose. And that purpose, dear friends, is to save you, to rescue you from the clutches of the devil and death and the grave. Jesus will not let anything stop him.

So that’s the first exclamation mark in our text today: Immediately! And the second is like unto it: Authority! That word “authority” jumps out at our eyes and ears in this text. Jesus demonstrates amazing, astonishing authority in what he says and does. This power can only come from God.

The words and the works of Jesus carry this divine authority. His teaching and his deeds. His teaching: Jesus was in the synagogue, teaching the true meaning of God’s Word. Jesus speaks like he knows what he’s talking about! And of course, he does! He is the Word of God incarnate. If anyone knows how to expound and interpret the Holy Scriptures, it is Jesus. He literally wrote the book!

So our text says, “He taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.” How did their scribes teach them? It would sound like this: “Rabbi Joshua said: I have received a tradition from Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai, who heard it from his teacher, and his teacher from his teacher,” and so on. They just kept repeating the opinions of other rabbis. But that was not how Jesus taught. Jesus would say, “You have heard that it was said so-and-so; but I say unto you.” Then Jesus would get straight to the point and make clear the intent of God on this or that subject. And people could tell that Jesus’ words carried such weight.

And not only his words, but his works also. Both his teaching and his deeds demonstrate his divine authority. We see this in the incident with the man with the unclean spirit. “And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit.” Here is a man in the control of, in the clutches of, an unclean spirit. An unclean spirit is a demonic spirit, and it has this man in its grasp. “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?” Well, actually, yes! Jesus of Nazareth has come to destroy the devil and all his works and all his ways. And this will just be the start. “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.” The unclean spirit has got this right. And he’s also got this part right: “I know who you are–the Holy One of God.” Yes, that’s true, too. Jesus is indeed the Holy One of God. He is God’s anointed, the Messiah, the Christ. Jesus is the very Son of God come in the flesh, and he has come to rescue mankind from the dominion of the devil.

So that’s what Jesus is going to do right now. No use dialoging with a demon. Out you go! “Be silent, and come out of him!” Which, of course, the unclean spirit has to do. Jesus is in charge here, and he’s exercising his authority like a boss.

Dear friends, Jesus has come to deliver you from the clutches of the devil. You and I were in Satan’s domain. We fell for the devil’s lies just like our parents did in the garden. And so we were headed for hell. “But God has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” How? By Jesus taking on our sins and suffering our punishment. In so doing, even as he suffered and died on the cross, Jesus was stomping on the devil’s head and dealing the death blow to Satan’s power. This is real authority that overcame sin and death, as evidenced by Christ’s victorious resurrection.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus uses his authority on your behalf. What he says, goes. When he says you are forgiven, you really are. His words carry authority. “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved.” Boom! And so it is! Exclamation mark! “This is my body, this is my blood, given and shed for you, for the forgiveness of sins.” Boom! And so it is! Exclamation mark! You can believe what Jesus says and does. You can stake your life on it. He has that kind of authority.

The people back then who heard his teaching and witnessed his works recognized that Jesus had this astonishing, amazing authority: “And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority.” “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” They were astonished! They were amazed! Some twenty times in the Gospel of Mark there is a word like that to describe the reactions that people had to Jesus.

But how about us? Have we lost our ability to be astonished? Has the gospel become humdrum to us? Has the good news become old news? If it has, ponder anew, take in afresh, the wonder of God’s love for us in Christ. Consider what Jesus did for us, by making the all-sufficient sacrifice for our sin, delivering us from death and the devil and eternal damnation. Regard Christ’s glorious resurrection and the prospect of what that will mean for us, namely, our own bodily resurrection when Christ returns. Imagine the eternal life we will enjoy, perfectly whole in body and soul, in a restored creation, in perfect fellowship with our Lord and all the saints. This is pretty outstanding! Understatement of the year! And even now, we have the gift of the Spirit, to keep us in the one true faith, through the means of grace, Word and Sacrament. God is lavish in his gifts!

And now maybe you can understand why “Exclamation Mark,” as I call him–that is, St. Mark the Evangelist–was so jazzed up about telling the Jesus story! “Immediately!” “Authority!” “Astonished!” Simply remarkable!