Sermon on Minneapolis 22.08.2010

May the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the love of God our Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with each and every one of us this morning, hour, and always.

Let us join in opening our services with prayer and thanksgiving. Our dear Heavenly Father, holy and righteous God, humbly we draw an eye unto You in prayer, Father, asking for Your presence and Your blessing. You know our needs, cares, trials, our temptations, and our failings. And You alone are able to divide unto us from Your word those morsels of grace which our hungering and thirsting souls have need of. Be with us this morning, Father. Bless our services for the honor and glory of Your name and the edification of Your congregation.

And we pray as Your Son has so taught us: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

In as much as Anna Simonson and Jason Hillica have announced their intentions to get married, we desire to pray on their behalf. God, Thou who hast established marriage, bless this covenant, grant this couple one-mindedness and love, and make their home a Christian home. Amen.

I shall read for our mutual study this morning gospel text from the 7th chapter of Mark, verses 31 through 37, the following holy words of God. We hear in Jesus' name:

"And again departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, He came unto the Sea of Galilee through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis. And they bring unto Him one that was deaf and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech Him to put His hand upon him. And He took him aside from the multitude and put His fingers into his ears, and He spit and touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, He sighed and saith unto him, 'Ephatha,' that is, 'Be opened.' And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. And He charged them that they should tell no man; but the more He charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it, and were beyond measure astonished, saying, 'He hath done all things well: He maketh both the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak.'" Amen.

This portion of the gospel, as Mark has recorded for us, captures a small snippet of the travels and the life of Jesus, His actions, and He, as the Son of God, of course, was sent here to bring us to heaven, to bring all sinners who desire peace and righteousness back to the Heavenly Father, to be cared for by His grace.

In this chapter, Mark has recorded a couple other happenings which point all to the same basic question of righteousness: What is it that defiles, and how is a person made righteous?

The Pharisees had kept almost like a constant watch over Jesus and His disciples and everything they did. And if they could in any way take a hold of them for something they'd said or done, they would do so, attempting, of course, to destroy the efforts and the effects of His ministry. So great was their hatred and bitterness because, of course, His words and His actions condemned them also. They, who considered themselves to be the most holy, under the preaching of Jesus found themselves to be sinners. And that is, of course, what the purpose of the law is: it is to condemn someone for their sins, to cause them to seek for righteousness, for a way of peace.

How does God pardon a sinner? But in this chapter, they accused Jesus and His disciples of eating with unwashed hands. In other words, as they were traveling, they probably picked some grain or fruit and ate it on the way as they walked, whereas one of the traditions that Pharisees were so adamant about was washing of hands and washing of utensils and washing of the tables and so on. And of course, as a good sanitary custom, we all say that is necessary and important for us. But Jesus desired to point out to the Pharisees that that is not a place of righteousness and it is not sin to eat with unwashed hands.

And so then He pointed out to them that not only do some of your traditions, your teachings of the traditions of the fathers and your teachings of the elders, aren't just not correct as far as righteousness, but some of them are absolutely wrong. They had a tradition where if someone no longer wished to support his parents, he could tell them a word in the Aramaic language—I think it was called 'korban'—in other words, it is a gift, 'by whatsoever I give you,' and I have therefore no more obligation to assist and support you. And Jesus says in doing so you make the word of God of none effect. In other words, you attempt to destroy the teachings of the fourth commandment: 'Honor thy father and thy mother, that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.'

And Luther teaches that, listen dear boys and girls, Luther says that no matter how strange or peculiar your parents are or appear in your eyes to be, they are the parents that God has given you, and they are the parents that you are required to honor and respect in both word and in deed. So God desires you to do the word of God as God wrote it on those two tables of tablets of stone.

It is so demanding, it is so exacting in its instructions and teachings that it leaves room for no one. Every single person in this world is condemned by that word and cannot attain the glory of heaven. That is its purpose: it is to cause one to seek for salvation and righteousness that God gives as a gift, not by the merit works of His Son, but by His grace.

Disciples of Jesus were also confused by this teaching, and so He further elaborated, and He said, "There is nothing from without the man that entering into him can defile him, but those things which come out of a man, those are they which defile. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear."

In other words, it is not eating and drinking that causes defilement—eating and drinking, of course, in the normal sense of food and nourishment—but what comes out, what comes out of the heart of man. He says, "For from within, out of the heart of man proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murderers, theft, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, hastiness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile the person."

And we have to admit that such we are. We are sin-corrupt. I am sure you have experienced, as I have experienced, in coming to services that it would have been nice to leave that old portion at home—all the cares and worries of temporal life, family, friends—and to be able to set one's cup at the table of the Lord to be filled with its goodness.

And to be so often, we find ourselves even sitting in services that the old portion is close in our mind, wander, and evil corrupt things proceed. And such we are, and that is why we need the grace of God, and that is why we gather again and again to hear the word of God, to experience again and again that we need the peace of God.

There is our source of power and strength and hope whereby we are able to be His children, to enjoy together with Him of that righteousness which proceeds when He has cleansed our heart. It comes out then in fruits of faith, not because we are capable of anything, but because He has blessed after those things.

When Jesus was traveling through the area Mark calls it here from Tyre and Sidon through the coast of Decapolis towards the Sea of Galilee—in other words, it's an area of that country of northern Galilee where there are a lot of pagan people—He was in that area accosted by a woman Mark recalls as a person who was a Greek about having her daughter healed and so on. But all of those things led to this portion where He is by the Sea of Galilee and a person who is deaf and dumb is brought to Him.

When we look at this action where Jesus is called again to heal someone, His behavior for this person points out the personal effect of the gospel where He is, we could say, for this person who is brought to Him who is deaf and dumb—in other words, cannot hear or speak—it's very personal.

For some people that Jesus healed, as the centurion requested, that He would just say the word. He said, "I know my daughter will be healed." Jesus exalted that faith of that centurion. In other words, that Roman, He said, "I have not found such great faith, no, not in Israel." But that Roman centurion believed, and his daughter was healed just by the word that Jesus spoke.

And so for this even this deaf and dumb person, Jesus could have done so, but we see by His actions that He did that which was probably required for that person's personal faith. Faith is always repentance; it is always a personal issue. It doesn't help me that you, brothers and sisters, are believing, and vice versa. It doesn't help children that your parents are believing if you are not yourself believing. It is personal faith that takes us home.

And in this case, for this person, Jesus taking him aside from the multitude—in other words, there was throngs, probably thousands of people surrounding Him. There Mark notes in the next chapter about 4,000 men that were fed at that time, plus women and children, so there was a huge throng following Him. He took this person aside for what purpose? To be able to communicate with him personally.

In other words, almost as if teaching us today that even though we preach and we teach and experience that faith comes by hearing and hearing by and through the word of God, it is the ministry that God has given unto us as His children. But we have also seen and heard, have we not, dear brothers and sisters, how sign language also is a form of communication that God has given to us even at this time for those who cannot hear, that God does through the power of His Spirit effect.

But what is it? It is a personal communication. Here Jesus takes this man aside and we could say with very explicit signs shows unto him what He is going to do. And He puts His fingers in his ears and spits and touches his tongue. He wanted to make sure that this person personally experienced that which He, as a Son of God, could do.

In other places where the ill were brought unto Jesus, He first of all preached the gospel unto them that your sins are forgiven, He said, so that you would know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. And then He told that one young man to take up your bed and walk.

So He pointed out that which is the most important part of His ministry. The miracles were important because they testified of what was His role, that He was the Son of God, but they were not the most important part of His ministry. As even today, the most important part of the ministry of the kingdom of God is the forgiveness of sins, the proclamation of the gospel so that all can hear and believe, so that each and every one of us can believe just as we find ourselves that our sins are forgiven in His name and through His blood and be able to continue on this way of heaven.

Jesus told those who were with this one who had been healed of his deafness and his dumbness to not broadcast it, to not proclaim it, to tell no one. But they didn't obey Him, of course; they just spread it all the more. And so that people from that huge throng heard of this message, and they proclaimed how wonderful and well He has done everything.

And then we see that it still comes down to personal faith. Is it sufficient, dear brothers and sisters, to know where the kingdom of God is? Is it sufficient to recognize that therein is a group? As we heard from our summer services in Rogers, many of the local people, authorities, and even the police marveled over the behavior of the children of God, the young people and so on.

One man even commented that, "You are so different because you are not in a hurry to depart from services, but you stay and you talk as if you are one big family."

All of that recognition of the fruits of the Spirit of God, which testify, of course, of what the Spirit is doing in our hearts, in the hearts of His children, is good and is necessary. But of course, it is not sufficient.

Recognition of where the kingdom of God is and admitting that they are in trouble of the group who are on their way to heaven doesn't suffice. But what is it? It is personal faith. You have to be stripped of all that is of your own to be able to come through that narrow gate of repentance so that God can clothe you with His righteousness, with that garment which is the righteousness of Christ, that pure linen which is knit on the middle cross of Golgotha where He said, "All is accomplished and fulfilled."

So is the message of the gospel today. It is the same as it was during the time of Jesus. It is the same as the disciples proclaimed, as the saints have throughout this New Testament time proclaimed, that God has given unto us this ministry of reconciliation, as the apostles: "Be reconciled to God."

God gave unto His own the keys to the kingdom. Jesus didn't take Him up to heaven, but He left Him here on earth so that all who believe could proclaim. So it is not dependent upon any one person here on this world, no one traveler, but each and every child of God is partaker of that royal and holy priesthood.

You, boys and girls, are also members of that priesthood because you can preach to each other and to mom and dad, "Your sins are forgiven unto you." Just think what power God has given unto you, that you can close the gates of hell and open the way to heaven so someone who is not believing would come unto you and ask that they could believe.

So God still in our time calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies us, sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and as deals in union with Jesus Christ in the true faith in which Christian church He daily and richly forgives me and all believers all our sins.

And of course, at the last, they will raise up me and all that they have been granted me and all believers in Christ everlasting life. So we believe and so we endeavor, and so God yet desires that this gospel message would sound forth.

Preach to your parents at home that message. Allow your little ones to so be blessed that they are rooted and grounded in the gospel message where they are able to then enjoy that which is the peace of God.

We do not have to travel here burdened by sin. We do not have to travel as those who have no source of power or strength to fight against sin, where we can dip again and again from the wells of salvation. We can renew those weaponry of warfare that we need on this way.

When we look at the battle of a child of God, the apostle notes that it is not a battle of the flesh, but it is a battle against evil spirits and spiritual wickedness in this world. It is a battle against the enemy of the soul and, of course, is a battle against our own weak portion, our sinful corrupt flesh.

And so we need all the weaponry of the Spirit, dear boys and girls. The apostle says to take the shield of faith. The shield of faith means we confess our faith. What happens when you confess your faith? It tells those around you in the world that you are a child of God and you don't desire to go with them to all those things which are contrary to faith and good conscience.

It protects you, shields you from attacks of the enemy and from the temptation that the world would bring to you. And wear, dear boys and girls, the helmet of the hope of salvation, because you have the hope of reaching eternal life in heaven. It protects your understanding of that salvation.

In other words, how a person is saved, wherein is there peace and joy found, how is it that you could be able to believe and endeavor in faith. This is our battle and this is our travel.

We are here not because we are so extra righteous of ourselves, but our righteousness and our ability to preach His gospel is because God has given it to us, because you believe given it to you, because you believe that He has made you a minister of His gospel and has not restricted it but has fulfilled as the prophet in the Old Testament prophesied that, "I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh."

God has poured out His Spirit in our time, and for that we rejoice and thank Him and praise Him. It is a wonderful time that we live when a brother can say to a brother and a sister to a sister, "Your sins are forgiven you in Jesus' name and blood."

We don't need to wait for that one time during the year when the high priest would go with blood into the holiest to sacrifice on behalf of himself and the people, but the way to the holiest was opened wide when Jesus died on the cross. The veil was torn between the holiest and the most holy in the temple, and that is our access that He created for us, access unto grace so that we can be His children and remain on this narrow way which brings us home to glory.

Continue, dear brothers and sisters, to believe that just as you are, your sins are forgiven in Jesus' name and blood unto peace, freedom, and joy.

I ask for my own sinful heart and soul, and I believe my many sins and doubts forgiven. I desire to believe together with you in Jesus' name. Amen.

The Lord bless us and keep us. The Lord make His face shine upon us and be gracious unto us. The Lord lift up His countenance upon us and give us peace, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.