St. Michael and All Angels Evangelical Lutheran Mission, UAC

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Who Is My Neighbor?

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My dear friends, the certain lawyer in today’s Gospel reading asks our Lord + Jesus, the Christ, “And who is my neighbor?” When studying the Second Table of the Law (commandments 4-10, which all deal with our responsibility to our neighbor) we also ask ourselves this question, “And who is my neighbor?” Today, our Lord provides the answer. Our neighbor is anyone who needs our compassion; who needs to be shown our mercy. So then, that should raise the question in our minds, “Who needs my compassion?” “Who needs to be shown mercy by me?” The short answer: Everybody. But we also need to define what compassion and mercy are: mercy is not treating somebody the way that they deserve to be treated.

How then do we (and our neighbor) deserve to be treated? The answer is in the parable that our Lord + Jesus preaches to us today. Our Lord states that “a certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho.” This is more than just a geographical description of where this man is at and where he is heading. Our Lord does not say something without there being an intention behind those words. Jerusalem was the holy city, the place of the temple and therefore, the place where God abided in His presence for and among His people, the Jews. That is to say simply that Jerusalem is the place where God abides with His people. Jericho, on the other hand, is the opposite. We remember Jericho from our Old Testament lessons. Jericho was the stronghold of the land of Canaan. The impregnable place that represented all that was horrible about the people of Canaan: their false gods, their corrupt living, their utter disregard for Who God is and what He does for them. To state it simply, Jericho was the place of the faithless, the godless, the sinner.

This man in our Lord’s parable has left Jerusalem and is going down to Jericho. One might say that this man represents Adam, who through his disobedience to God left the place where he enjoyed complete fellowship with our Lord and exchanged it for the toil and labor by the sweat of his brow that comes from living in this world corrupted by sin—his sin. And because Adam sinned, all of his children—all of us—no longer enjoy the complete fellowship of our Lord. We too have become corrupt in our thoughts, words, and deeds. The man in the parable we are told “fell among robbers.” These robbers are none other than the devil and his legions, who led Adam into temptation and beat him with the original sin which we continue to bear. We also are continually tormented in this life through the temptations into sin by these “robbers” who rob men of their faith, and turn us to look to our own works and keeping of the Law for our salvation. Even as the lawyer who first approached our Lord sought His redemption through the working and keeping of the Law.

It is interesting to note here that the word which is translated as “beat him” in the Greek is “plagues.” This is what sin is to you and me, it is a plague that infests and kills, and leaves us “half dead.” That is to say, not only can a completely dead person do nothing to bring himself out of death into life, even a half dead person cannot revive himself through the keeping of dead works. For sin completely infests him like a plague.

Our Lord now relates that both a priest and a Levite see the man and “passed by on the other side” of the road. Who do this priest, and this Levite represent? In short, they represent those who show no compassion upon this poor sinner, who is plagued with sin and death. Spiritually, they are the Law of God. The Law shows the poor, miserable sinner no compassion, for it demands perfect obedience; perfect keeping. It demands, as our Lord points out to the lawyer in today’s pericope, perfect mercy and compassion for our neighbor, for those in need of being rescued from sin, death and the devil.

How do we show compassion for our neighbor? The Samaritan—a foreigner—shows us what true compassion is. (And mark this well, that in next week’s Gospel we will get another Samaritan—a Samaritan l***r) The Samaritan (often referred to as the “Good Samaritan”) is our Lord + Jesus, the Christ, Who bandages our wounds—our plagues, our sins—through the proclaiming of forgiveness of our sins through the words of Absolution, which declare that on account of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ, and His perfect keeping of the Law, and His perfect sacrifice of death on the tree of the holy Cross, we have forgiveness, life, and salvation through faith in Him. This what St. Paul writes to the Galatians in today’s Epistle, “But the scripture shut up all things under sin, that the promise by faith in + Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.” More than that, our Lord also pours oil and wine on our wounds to heal them. These are references to Holy Baptism and the Holy Supper. For in the ancient Church the Holy Baptism was sealed (confirmed, where we get that term confirmation) by pouring olive oil infused with frankincense and myrrh upon the newly baptized. And the wine is clearly a reference to the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar.

In these two Sacraments the plague of sin is washed away, and we are sustained in that freedom from sin when we gather in this place, and we are given the medicine for our soul—the medicine of our Lord’s Body and Blood given in bread and wine for us Christians to eat and drink so that we might enjoy forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation.

Our Lord, in His compassion for us, does not stop with Holy Baptism, Holy Absolution, and the Holy Supper, but He further (as the Good Samaritan) sets us on His own beast—His holy Scriptures and the teachings of the Apostles—and delivers us to the Inn—the Church—where He entrusts us to the Host—the one appointed to continue to bandage and cure us from the plague of sin—His holy Ministers—who continue in the Church, through preaching and the sacraments, to bind up our broken wounds with the promises of the Gospel, speaking into our ears the truth that real redemption is not found in our works or our keeping of the Law, but is found in the works of our Lord and His sacrifice on the holy Cross for us.

Therefore, my dear friends, how do we show mercy to our neighbor? To “everyone”? Well, just as the man who was beaten by robbers was a picture of the Old Adam and by virtue is a picture of all mankind, so too is the Samaritan a picture of the New Adam, and by virtue all those who through faith in the New Adam, desire to live holy lives through the help of the Holy Ghost. That is to say, we show mercy to our neighbor by doing the same things that the Samaritan did for the man lost on the way and outside of the fellowship of our Lord. We show mercy to our neighbor by bringing them to this holy house so that their wounds from sin, death, and devil might be bandaged through Absolution; that they might have their wounds cleansed through the washing and regeneration of the Holy Ghost in the waters of Holy Baptism; that they might receive the medicine for their souls found in our Lord’s Body and Blood given in bread and wine; that they might hear the preaching of the holy Scriptures and the teachings of the Apostles from the lips of the Minister from the pulpit, who through the “two shillings” of the Law and the Gospel keeps proclaiming to them that their works merit them nothing, but our Lord’s works—His work of compassion for us by perfecting fulfilling the Law that we could not, and His suffering and dying in our place on the tree of the holy cross—is the true path to salvation through faith in that promise.

“Who is my neighbor?” is the question which the lawyer asks our Lord + Jesus. Our neighbor is he who needs compassion and mercy, which means, everybody. How do we show compassion and mercy for our neighbor, for everybody? By bringing them to the Inn, that is, the Church; to this holy house to receive the gifts of our Good and True Samaritan, our Lord + Jesus, the Christ. Therefore, my friends, as our Lord said, “Go, and do thou likewise.” Let us show compassion and mercy for our neighbors: our boyfriends, our girlfriends, our spouses, our coworkers, and even those who we do not necessarily like or agree with, and bring them to the Host, so that they might have their wounds bandaged and cured in this holy Inn, so that everyone may receive the salvation that leads them into life everlasting. In the Name of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

His Ears Were Opened

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My dear friends, the kingdom of the Christ is found only where the forgiveness, compassion, and love of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ can be found. Only where our Lord is opening up spiritually deaf ears, and loosing spiritual mute tongues can the kingdom of the Christ be found. It is not found where people give us a laundry list of things to do. It is not found where works are praised; where men imagine that by their holy lives, they can somehow please the Lord God. It is not found where men believe that they only have a few minor things wrong with them; that if they could only fix, or get rid of these things, then their lives would be righteous and pleasing to the Lord God. The kingdom of the Christ can only be found where poor, miserable sinners crushed by the weight of their sin; who find no remedy in themselves, find a remedy in the Lord + Jesus, and in Him alone.

We do not often hear from the Evangelist St. Mark in the Church’s year. Only four times are we presented with a Gospel reading from St. Mark; only seven times if we count festivals, ember days, and midweek Lenten readings. But today, the Evangelist St. Mark presents us with a healing text—a miracle of our Lord. This healing reveals to us that we can bring no good work with which we may prop ourselves up before the Lord. We cannot heal ourselves. We cannot remove sin and its consequences from our lives. It is purely by the grace and mercy—the compassion—of our Lord and Savior + Jesus, the Christ, that we are healed and forgiven.

This deaf and mute man represents us in our sinful state. We are born spiritually deaf and mute. We are actually worse off than this man, for he can see, but we are born spiritually blind as well. We are conceived and born in sin. There is no good thing living in us. We bring nothing to the table of salvation. As was said in a sermon recently, “we are beggars.” We possess nothing of which we can make a bargain with the Lord. Nothing with which we can make a payment to the Lord for His grace and mercy. Even with this deaf and mute man, St. Mark tells us that he did not come of his own accord. “They” brought to Him this deaf man with an impediment in his speech. We are not told who “They” are. But I believe we can safely assume that it was people who knew the man and who cared for the man, because nowhere in this text (as we are told in other pericopes) that this was done to “test” the Lord. No, my dear friends, this Gospel reading from St. Mark is like another reading that we will get in a few weeks where the friends of a man sick with the palsy bring him to the Lord by removing the roof and letting him down in front of the Lord + Jesus.

Like that text in a few weeks, “They” bring this man afflicted with a hearing and speech impediment to the Lord because they care for and have compassion on this man. This is not only an example for us, but also reflects our very own hearts. For we also have compassion on our friends and neighbors. We desperately desire that they would be healed of the spiritual blindness, deafness, and muteness with which they were born. We desire that they also would receive the healing of their souls through the work and merits of the Christ. This is why we continue to invite and encourage our friends, family, co-workers, and neighbors to join us here in this place, so that they too may receive the hearing that leads to salvation of their souls.

For like us, everyone we know is also unable to save themselves by their holy living. Nobody receives points for being a good person with our Lord God. As the Prophet Isaiah states, even our good works are as filthy rags before the Lord God. We cannot please Him by our works. The kingdom of the Christ eludes us when we try to present ourselves as holy in and of ourselves apart from faith in the Lord + Jesus. We remain deaf and mute. We remain blind and unfeeling. No, everyone must be brought to the Lord + Jesus for healing.

We are brought to our Lord + Jesus by the work of the Holy Ghost in His holy Christian Church. Here in this place, we are brought by the work of the Holy Ghost through the means of grace to our Lord and Savior + Jesus, the Christ. For it is here where we meet the compassion, forgiveness, grace, and mercy of our Lord + Jesus. It is here in this place where we meet, and are brought into, the kingdom of the Christ.

And what does our Lord + Jesus do for us here in this place. He does the same thing that He does for this deaf man with an impediment in his speech. He takes us apart from the crowds and deals with us Himself. He takes us away from all those things which get in the way of His giving us His gifts, so that we may have His full attention. Our Lord removes all of the distractions that plague us—that prevent us from being healed. He draws us to Himself so He may have our full attention.

Apart from the crowds, our Lord + Jesus has the full attention of this deaf man with a speech impediment. Then He does some things that we may in our germophobic society consider gross and unsanitary. He puts His fingers in the man’s ears. Then He takes spital from His own mouth and touches the man’s tongue. We may ask, “Why?” It is not as if the Lord + Jesus needed to do this. This is not some sort of magic formula for healing deafness and muteness. Our Lord + Jesus has proven already in countless readings in the holy Scriptures that He can heal with a word. In fact, He has shown that He does not even need to be present to heal a person. But here, He gets up close and personal with this deaf and mute man. Why? It is for the benefit of the deaf man.

It is as if our Lord + Jesus is telling this man exactly what his problem is. He sticks His finger in the man’s ear as if to say, “You cannot hear, and I will make you hear again.” He takes spit from His own mouth and touches the man’s tongue, as if to say, “You have an impediment in your speech, this too will I heal.” The Lord + Jesus, like a Great Physician, points out the man’s troubles and tells him that He will heal him of his afflictions.

This is how the Lord + Jesus deals with us. He takes us away from the crowds, away from all those things that distract us from truly hearing Him, and then with the words of the Law, by the mouth of the preacher, He instructs us in what truly afflicts us. The Law shows us our sins. It shows us that we are poor, miserable sinners—we are beggars—who cannot save ourselves. The requirement of the Law is too heavy. We cannot remove our blindness, deafness, or muteness. We cannot change our unfeeling heart into a heart of compassion. We cannot turn our heart of stone into a heart of flesh. We are trapped in our condition. We are bound by our affliction.

The Lord + Jesus, through the preaching of the Law, points out our condition, and that we cannot heal ourselves by our own good works and rationalizations. He points out to us that He is the only One Who can heal us of our affliction. And then by the preaching of the Gospel, that through His fulfilling of the Law and His suffering and death in our place, He has won salvation for us. He puts His finger in our ear to say, “Listen to the Word of the Lord God.” For in it is the kingdom of the Christ preached. His compassion, mercy, grace, and forgiveness are preached into our ears through the preaching of the Gospel. This Word, for many of us, was first spoken at our Holy Baptism, where our Lord + Jesus declared us to be His own. He placed His holy Name upon us, so that we bear that Name with us throughout our earthly lives. And we can remind ourselves each day as we arise, and each night as we lay down to sleep, and throughout the day, that we belong in the kingdom of the Christ whenever we make the sign of the holy cross; the sign into which we were baptized.

Our Lord + Jesus also touches our tongues by placing upon them His very Body and His very Blood under bread and wine. By this meal we remember and proclaim our Lord’s death for the remission of our sins. But this remembrance of our Lord’s death is not just a reminder of the historical event. We are not just remembering that our Lord + Jesus died some two thousand years ago. No, my dear friends, we are remembering and proclaiming by eating and drinking our Lord’s Body and Blood in bread and wine, that our Lord’s death won the forgiveness of sins for all mankind, and that in this eating and drinking we are actually receiving the remission of our sins. By this meal our Lord + Jesus is healing us of the impediment of sin with which we are afflicted.

Therefore, my dear friends, let us rejoice this day. For we have been brought to this place by the Holy Ghost to come before our Lord + Jesus to receive healing and faith. He has shown us our sins by the preaching of the Law, and He has healed our deafness and muteness by opening up our ears to hear His holy Word. His holy Word tells us all about His forgiveness, love, compassion, mercy, and grace. His holy Word tells us that He has brought us into His kingdom—the kingdom of the Christ. We dwell in His midst and with our Lord. And He continues to heal us and lead us into His eternal Kingdom in Heaven. For that is where our Lord truly desires us to be. He desires for us, and all mankind, to be with Him in Heaven, to dwell for all eternity with all the saints who have gone before us, and with all the angels who minister before the Lord.

We who have been healed by the Lord’s grace and compassion through the faith implanted in us by His Word will be brought by His angels to dwell with Him and all the saints in His Kingdom—in the kingdom of the Christ. Here we get a foretaste of that Kingdom, whenever we gather together in the place to hear about what our Lord + Jesus has done for us poor, miserable beggars. He has gifted us with the healing of our souls, and cleansed us with His righteousness, so that we stand before Lord God draped in the works and merits of the Christ, and are fully healed of all of our afflictions. In the Name of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

Henceforth Thou Shalt Catch Men

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My dear friends, our Lord shows us the peace which His grace and mercy ultimately gives to our troubled souls. When our Lord declares peace to us, He is simply forgiving us our sins. When I tell you “God’s peace be with you,” I am simply declaring God’s forgiveness for you. The same is when we say to one another, “Peace be with you.” We are declaring that we are forgiven by God of our sins on account of the work of Christ. For the greatest thing in our life that destroys peace within our souls is the struggle with sin, and its consequences, like sickness and death. And when we struggle with these things we are led into prayer for sin leads us into fear and trepidation. But, even in this fear, on account of our faith, we know to Whom we can turn to receive relief from our fear. Therefore, we come before God pleading for His grace and mercy—for peace from the fear of our sin and the consequences of sin around us that have laid waste to our lives.

However, the blessing of God never seems to come when we want it. And God’s answer to our prayers never seems to come when we need it. For we cry out to the Lord especially in our hour of need. And we pray most earnestly and most fervently when we are in crisis. And just at that moment, we are sure God is not listening; and that His blessing will not come right then and right there. For if we were sure that He would answer us, then we would not need to pray or ask or beg. But because we need to remember that God does listen, does do for us, and does bless us even when we cannot see it, even when we are desperate—that is why we pray.

But you must now hear and know this: God’s grace and mercy precedes our prayer. God’s blessing comes even before we pray. God’s love, God’s compassion, God’s kindness overshadows us and surrounds us even before we even know we are in a crisis; even before we think to pray. That is true of all of us. And that was true of the disciples in today’s Gospel.

They were fishermen, and had “toiled all night, and took nothing.” No doubt, they were frustrated beyond measure. For this is how they made their living; how they fed and clothed themselves and their families. And now, after a long hard night, they had nothing to show for it. So, they gave up, brought their boats in, and let our Lord + Jesus borrow them so He could preach. He “entered into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, … and He sat down and taught the multitudes out of the boat.”

Now, we do not know exactly what our Lord + Jesus said when He preached to this crowd. But we do know this—He spoke about God’s grace, mercy and peace. For He spoke as His Apostles would speak, and as His Ministers today continue to speak. He spoke about our Father’s kindness for us, which we do not deserve, and which we are unworthy to receive. From that fishing boat, our Lord + Jesus preached about God’s blessing, which exceeds our imagination. And He spoke about His compassion which goes deeper than any need we now know, and deeper than any hurt we now feel. And our Lord + Jesus preached about the safety, the security, and the comfort that God the Father gives us by the Holy Ghost in the Kingdom of God. And He preached about the peace, which surpasses all understanding, which guards and protects all God’s people by His grace. All these things He preached. And “when He had left speaking, He said unto Simon, ‘Put out out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.’”

Now think about this for a moment. These fishermen—Sts. Peter, James, and John, and St. Andrew (St. Peter’s brother)—had spent all night fishing. They were frustrated and exhausted. They were in no mood to mess around again—especially at the wrong time of day and in the wrong place in the water. For every fisherman knows that fish are best caught in the evening or at night, or the very early morning, when it is still dark out and cool; And that fish are best caught in the shallow water along the shoreline where the weeds grow thickest. But our Lord + Jesus says, “Go now, in the middle of the day, while it is hot. And go to the place where the sun beats the hottest—the middle of the lake. And go to the water that is deepest—where the fish have plenty of room to run and hide. Go there, and go now—and let down your nets for a draught.”

I tell you, my dear friends; the grace and mercy of God does not work the way we expect it to; and at the time we think it should; and according to our ideas of justice and knowledge. The grace and mercy of God looks past the rules—the rules of God’s exactness. And the grace and mercy of God sees the works and merits of the Christ, and gives us peace. All so that He might bring us into His kingdom, so that He might feed us with a food that surpasses our understanding, a food that gives greater peace than we ever hoped for, and a food that truly does strengthen us not only now, but even through death, and into the life to come.

Food is how our Lord + Jesus gives His peace; food for the body, yes, but most of all, food for the soul. And the food for the soul is not just a word that soothes, or a blessing that calms. The food for the soul—the food that truly nourishes and strengthens us—is the food of our Lord + Jesus’ holy Body and His precious Blood. This food our Lord gives us by His own hand, at His own invitation, at this very altar. He wraps His Body in bread, and conceals His Blood in wine. And then says, “Here, take and eat, and drink ye all it. This is My peace—the peace you prayed for, the blessing you really need—My love that really will settle and soothe you. In this bread which I bless, and this wine which I give—there you receive everything I Am, everything I have, everything I give. For that food is not a picture or idea of what could be. This food—this holy blessed Sacrament—this is My Body and My Blood, given and shed for you for the remission of sins.”

Food is the core of our Lord’s peace. So, after preaching peace, our Lord gives peace to those tired, irritated fishermen by telling them to catch food—in the wrong place, and at the wrong time.

And by the grace of the Holy Ghost, St. Peter, called Simon, and the others, believed our Lord + Jesus. They heard His outlandish command, and they did it. They did not fight or resist or walk away. They said what every Christian should say: “‘But at Thy word’ I will do what Thou hast said.”

Were they blessed? Beyond measure. And was it because they believed? Yes. But even more so, it was because our Lord + Jesus was gracious and merciful. For they had believed before—believed that fish would come at night in the shallow waters. But now, our Blessed Lord is gracious and merciful to them in a way they did not imagine, and at a time they did not expect. So gracious and merciful was He that “they inclosed a great multitude of fishes; and their net were breaking” so they had to get another boat, and then “filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.”

This is how our heavenly Father is with His grace and mercy. He does not skimp. He does not give us only what we need to get by. He overwhelms us with His kindness. He is abundant in His blessing. He is overflowing with His gifts. He gives more than we know what to do with, more than we need, and more than enough.

And then it hits us: that we really do not deserve any of our Lord’s grace and mercy. That we are unworthy of any smile, any kindly gesture, any lively word, any compassion that our Lord + Jesus shows or gives. For we do not treat each other like our Lord + Jesus treats us. And we often grumble and complain instead of trusting and receiving whatever He gives. We always want more and different, instead of receiving with thanksgiving whatever our Lord chooses to give. And we even sometimes curse what our Lord gives us, what He calls our blessing. For, it is not what we wanted.

When that happens—when it hits us that we are unworthy of our Lord’s mercy and grace—then we should imitate St. Peter. For when St. Peter saw the catch of fish, he “fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.’”

Was he afraid? Yes. But St. Peter also knew his place—that he rightfully should not be in the Lord’s presence, and in the Lord’s kingdom; and that the Lord + Jesus had every right to walk away, every right to lash out against him because of his little faith and his griping and complaining the night before.

But, just as St. Peter’s knees hit the ground, there is the Lord surprising him once more with His grace and mercy. For the Lord + Jesus does not say, “You’re right, Peter. You do deserve nothing.” Instead, He kindly and gently says, “‘Fear not.’” (Which is to say, ‘Peace be with you.’ For with His mercy, there is nothing to fear, there is only forgiveness and peace.) And our Lord says, “I did not do this miracle so that you may be afraid of Me. Rather, I blessed you and had mercy on you so that you might all the more believe Me—and believe in Me. So ‘Fear not.’ Instead, stand tall. For the God of Heaven and Earth has had mercy on you, forgives you everything, and gives you, His kingdom. And moreover, just for you Peter, and you other fishermen, I give you another mercy, another blessing: “From henceforth thou shalt catch men.”

That is how it is with the Lord’s grace and mercy. It never stops. It continually surprises us. It goes more deeply than we can imagine; more deeply than we ever dared to hope; more deeply than any sin we have ever committed, or any fear we have ever known. And this Lord’s mercy then also transforms us—from what we were and what we thought was most important, into what our Lord says is good and right and best, and we find peace and comfort in Him, and rest for our sin-troubled souls.

It is no accident that this entire story happens over water. For that is where we first meet our Lord’s grace and mercy, and where we are first given eternal peace—in the waters of Holy Baptism, where we are transformed to be children of the heavenly Father. And it is no accident that this entire story is about food. For, that is how our Lord continues to give His grace, mercy and peace to us—at this holy altar, where Christ + Jesus feeds us with Himself. And it is no accident that this story climaxes with the Lord saying, “Fear not.” For that is what He says to us in Holy Absolution, and which proclaims to us that we have peace and forgiveness with God.

Therefore, my dear friends, let us take this to heart, and live from this grace, mercy, and peace that our Lord + Jesus gives—for to Him, with His Father and the Holy Ghost, belongs all glory, honor and worship. In the day of your trouble, He will give you peace. Peace be with you! In the Name of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

Here He Is Comforted

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My dear friends, one of the hardest parts about being a pastor is not being able to take away someone’s physical pain. To watch someone suffering with an illness or some physical malady and not be able to do anything about it pains us ministers gravely. We have not been given the gift to heal physical disorders. Although, this is common to everyone. Unless one is a medical professional, most of us cannot heal someone’s physical ailments. There are even some illnesses and physical defects that even the medical profession cannot heal. This may leave us feeling defeated at times; wanting to heal the affliction but being unable to do so. We ache with pain in our hearts for those who suffer such afflictions and not be able to do anything for them.

At least that is what it appears to this evil world. The world expects the Church to be able to perform some miracle for these individuals, to prove that it is as gracious and merciful as it claims. Indeed, there are many individuals who take advantage of poor people’s need to see miracles by putting on a show that draws people into their fake shenanigans. These so-called faith-healers deceive many into grasping at the fake straws they put forth. One would think that it would go a long way to convert many to Christianity if the Church was able to perform miracles on a regular basis. But our Lord + Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel reading from the Evangelist St. Luke that that would not be the case. Indeed, many miracles happen every day which if not outright proving the existence of the Lord God, strongly allude to His presence among us. And yet, the world remains either apathetic towards the Church, or openly hostile.

Our Lord + Jesus tells us parable today. The parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man in the parable petitions Father Abraham that He would send Lazarus back from the dead to be a witness to the afterlife. Lazarus was to return to this world so that the rich man’s five brothers might see and believe and not end up in the place of torment in which the rich man found himself. He thought that is someone had risen from the dead this would be proof enough—a miracle great enough—to prove to this sinful world that what the Church teaches is true. But our Lord + Jesus, through the voice of Father Abraham, rightly points out that this would not be the case.

In fact, there was a real man named Lazarus, who our Lord + Jesus brought back to life after Lazarus had been in the grave for four days; the amount of time in which a body would start to decay and stink. The Lord + Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. This was just before the Lord endured His own suffering and death at the hands of wicked men. What do you suppose was the response of those who heard that Lazarus was raised from the dead? Sure, there were those who rejoiced at the fact, and believed that the Lord + Jesus was the Messiah sent from the Lord God. It was this event which prompted the Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem with shouts from the crowds and the waving of palm and olive branches, and the praises of the people. But we are told by the Evangelists that not everyone was pleased by the raising of Lazarus. Indeed, we are told that this prompted anger and hatred for Lazarus. They sought to kill him, just as they sought to kill the Lord + Jesus.

Even the Lord’s own resurrection did not do much to turn men’s hearts toward the Lord. After His resurrection and before His ascension, only five hundred people believed on Him and were witness to Him being raised from the dead. Even after the gifting of the Holy Ghost on Pentecost only three thousand were baptized on that day; three thousand out of about six million people. So, our Lord + Jesus is right. Father Abraham in the parable is right. No one is going to be converted to Christianity by observing some miracle. No one is going to turn to the Church if the ministers were able to heal people of their physical diseases and maladies.

Even as much as it pains ministers to watch the failing bodies of those under their care, and their own failing bodies, we have been given a much greater weapon against the powers of evil in this world. We have been given the Word of the Lord God. This was the point of our Lord’s parable. Great miracles are not going to convert people to Christianity. Some miracles may turn people’s heads toward the Church for a time, but as history reveals, the passage of time and the return of more physical ailments not being healed turns men’s hearts away once again. What keeps people in the Church amidst the physical pains and sorrows of this life is the Word of the Lord God. The preaching that we have a Savior and Redeemer is what truly draws people into the Church, and keeps them there. For by the Word the Holy Ghost works to create, strengthen, and renew faith in the hearts of all those who hear the Word of the Lord God.

We have as our example from the parable the man called Lazarus. How does he end up in Heaven and the rich man does not? The rich man has all that the world offers and craves. He is dressed in fine clothes, he “fares sumptuously every day,” meaning he never went hungry. He was popular and loved by the world. This is the type of person that the world imagines will be in Heaven. Such a person must truly be blessed by the Lord God to have all these earthly possessions. But the rich man lacked the one thing needful for admittance into Heaven. He lacked faith in the Lord God. He trusted in his worldly possessions. He loved the things of this life more than the things of the life to come. Many people in this life are drawn away from the Church because of worldly pursuits such as the rich man had.

Lazarus, on the other hand, had nothing. He did not even have his health. He was poor, hungry, and the only comfort he had was the wild dogs coming to lick his sores and wounds. He was fed only with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. The world looks a such a person and believes them to be hated by the Lord God. This is especially true among the prosperity Gospel preachers. One wonders how the Joel Osteens of the world get around this text. For the rich man is clearly shamed, and the poor man Lazarus is the one who ends up in the bosom of Father Abraham. What does Lazarus have that the rich man does not? He has faith in the Lord God. This is the true miracle! By the world’s reckoning Lazarus should cry out in hatred for the Lord God. Look what miserable conditions and physical ailments this man has to endure. Surely a loving Lord God would do something about this poor man’s condition. But that is the point! The Lord God did do something for this poor man Lazarus. He gave him the words of Moses and the prophets.

He heard the Word of the Lord God and believed on Him. He heard the promise of a Savior and believed on Him. He trusted not in the things of this world. He did not turn away from the promises because he had less than the rich man. He did not turn away because he barely had anything of this world to call his own. No, he remained faithful, because he truly believed the promises that were spoken of by Moses and the prophets. From God could nought divide him. The promise of forgiveness of his sins. The promise of an eternal life in Heaven resting, comforted, in the bosom of Father Abraham was all that he needed to endure the cruelties of this life. The promise of rescue from the evils of this life caused him to cling in faith to the Lord God.

This is why ministers realize, even when they are unable to heal the physical conditions of those under their care, that they possess something far greater than the ability to perform some miracle. We have the Word of the Lord God. We have the promises that were handed down from Moses and the prophets. We have the promises of a crucified and risen Savior in the Lord + Jesus, the Christ. For poor, miserable sinners who know their lost condition on account of their manifold sins and trespasses find more comfort in the promise of forgiveness and salvation offered in the Word of the Lord God. Any disease or physical ailment that we endure in this life pales in comparison to the promise of an eternal life in Heaven where those diseases and ailments will no longer torment us.

The unbelieving world will be like the rich man in the parable. Notice that the rich man has no name. Some Early Fathers want to give him the name of Demas, which is just the use of the Greek word for “rich man.” But he has no name because as loved and important as he was to the world, in the torments and anguish of Hell, he has nothing. Even the circumstances of his death draw no notice. He simply died and was buried. No fanfare, no praises heaped upon him, no words of “rest in peace” spoken about him. He died and was buried, and now endures the torments of Hell because of his unbelief. Such is the fate of the unbelieving world.

Contrast that with the death of Lazarus, who during his earthly life endured torments and anguish. He was carried by the angels to the bosom of Father Abraham. There is great care and compassion showed by the Lord God for those who suffered in this life, but through remaining faithful unto death received the crown of life. This is the promise that we have. We have the promise of an eternal life in Heaven with our Lord and Savior, Jesus, the Christ. There we will join with all the saints who have been carried by the angels to the waiting arms of our loving, heavenly Father to receive comfort from the pains of this life forever and ever.

Therefore, my dear friends, let us hear the Word of the Lord God which speaks of the promises of an eternal home in Heaven. And let us, as St. John says in the Epistle reading, show love for our fellow man by preaching to them the Word of the Lord God. For true love is not as the world claims it is, letting people languish in their sins and unbelief, like the rich man from the parable. Rather, true love is proclaiming the remission of sins for all those who confess their sins and cling in faith to the Lord + Jesus. True love is giving people a foundation for a faith that secures for them an eternal home in Heaven. Let us love our brothers with the Word of the Lord God, which preaches into their ears their forgiveness and salvation that leads to their eternal comfort, especially when we can do nothing to fix their physical and earthly pains. In the Name of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ. Amen.