{"id":5164,"date":"2020-01-08T09:53:34","date_gmt":"2020-01-08T16:53:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crossalone.us\/?p=5164"},"modified":"2020-01-08T09:57:19","modified_gmt":"2020-01-08T16:57:19","slug":"epiphany-2-the-light-is-the-life-john-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crossalone.us\/?p=5164","title":{"rendered":"Epiphany 2: \u201cThe light is the life\u201d (John 1:4)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Please click here for a pdf version of this document<\/a>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(A possible sermon for the second Sunday of Epiphany.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord\nand Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you ever been to a naturalization ceremony for new\ncitizens? Or seen one on TV? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Canada citizenship ceremonies happen at NHL games. A\nred carpet is laid out on the ice. The new immigrants walk out to the middle of\nthe arena. The official reads some words and pronounces the new immigrants to\nbe Canadian citizens. The crowd stands, cheers, and hollers: \u201cWelcome to\nCanada!\u201d One immigrant said the relief, joy, and sense of belonging she felt\nthat day are unforgettable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In our country citizenship ceremonies are held usually in\ncourt houses and schools, less dramatic than center ice at an NHL game, but no\nless moving. When the official announcement is made, it is done<\/strong>.\nCitizenship has been conferred.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The same is true for the courtroom ceremony\nfinalizing an adoption. When the court issues the decree of adoption<\/strong>,\nthe relationship of the parents with their child has been permanently and\nlegally established. It is done.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or imagine yourself in a criminal\ncourtroom, guilty of a crime, but instead of sentencing you to prison, the\njudge declares you not guilty. You are free to go. It is done.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Citizenship ceremonies, adoption\nceremonies, and criminal trials \u2013 are all events in which the proclaimed word\ndecisively changes life: You are now citizens! Your child is now fully yours! You\nare free to go! These events are useful analogies (not perfect) for preaching,\nour focus today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this season of Epiphany we\ncelebrate the coming of the light. John 1:4: \u201cIn him was life and the life was\nthe light of men.\u201d The life<\/strong> was the light<\/strong>. The light comes. John\n1:14: \u201cThe Word<\/strong> became flesh<\/strong> and dwelt among us.\u201c The light<\/strong>\nis the life<\/strong>. The light explodes the darkness; it comes to save us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how are people to believe in\nhim of whom they have never heard? Quoting Isa 53:1, Paul asks: \u201cLord, who has\nbelieved what he has heard from us?\u201d And Paul answers: in Romans 10:17:\n\u201cSo faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes by the preaching\nof Christ<\/strong>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christ himself comes by\nthe preaching<\/strong> of him. The preaching\nitself is the means<\/strong> of his coming. Like baptism and the Lord\u2019s\nSupper, preaching is the<\/strong> means<\/strong>by which he comes to save. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Beware the bias in translations here. The ESV tips the\ntext to evangelical decision theology. Rom 10:17: \u201c\u2026hearing comes through the\nword of Christ.\u201d The translation, \u201cthe word of Christ,\u201d helps those who want to\nimply that faith here is a matter of believing things in a book, an objectified\ndeposit of faith, whereas the \u201cpreaching of Christ\u201d rightly lifts up the\npreaching as a sacramental means <\/strong>of salvation. The usual meaning of the\nGreek word involved is \u201cspeaking.\u201d) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christ is not absent; he here, living, and active in his\nWord to convict of sin and convince of grace. He is here by means<\/strong> of his\nWord, as many texts say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 Thessalonians 2:9: \u201cFor you\nremember our labor and toil, brethren; we worked night and day, that we might\nnot burden any of you, while we preached to you<\/strong> the gospel of God.\u201d And\n2:13: \u201cAnd we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the\nword of God <\/strong>which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men\nbut as what it really is, the word of God, which is<\/strong> at work in you\nbelievers.<\/strong>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 Peter 1:23-25: \u201cYou have been\nborn anew, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living\nand abiding word of God<\/strong>; for \u2018All flesh is like grass and all its glory\nlike the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word\nof the Lord abides forever.\u2019 That word is the good news which was preached\nto you.<\/strong>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preaching is the means by which the Lord breaks through\ntime and space to be here. By the preaching of Christ, he himself is here,\nreally here, convicting of sin and convincing of grace. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pastor is like the one who delivers the mail. The\nlongtime motto of the Postal Service applies to pastors, too: \u201cNeither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of\nnight stays these couriers<\/strong> from the swift completion of their appointed\nrounds.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like the mail\ncarrier, the pastor has a singular focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pastor\u2019s job\nis not to be an entertainer, a razzle-dazzle performer, or ringmaster. The\npastor\u2019s job is not to be a salesman, pitching folks to make a decision. The\npreacher is also not a taskmaster, giving believers their weekly spiritual\nto-do list. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A sermon is not a\nmotivational speech, nor a virtue-signaling talk about abstractions like love\nand grace, which can be anywhere and mean most anything. Nor is a sermon about\ndoctrines and dogmas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul writes: \u201c\u2026it pleased God through the folly of\nwhat we preach<\/strong> to save those who believe (1 Cor 1:21). The folly <\/strong>of\nwhat we preach? What folly <\/strong>is this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Alice\nin Wonderland<\/em>, Alice says to the Red Queen: “One can’t believe impossible things<\/strong><\/em>.” “I daresay you haven’t had\nmuch practice,” said the Queen. “When I was younger, I always did it\nfor half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast<\/strong><\/em>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But this is\nnot the folly of faith, believing six impossible things before breakfast! The\nfolly we preach is not about magical or mysterious things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rather, the folly is the cross and resurrection.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in 1515 Matthias Gr\u00fcnewald painted the crucifixion,\nand he put John the Baptist in the scene, standing off to one side of the cross\nwith his arm raised, and index finger pointing to the crucified Jesus. As John\n1:6 reads: \u201cThere was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came for\ntestimony, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him. He\nwas not the light, but came to bear witness to the light.\u201d John the Baptist is\nthere in Gr\u00fcnewald\u2019s\nfamous painting, pointing to the cross, as if to say in the words of John 1:29:\n\u201cBehold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What John the Baptist did, we do. We point: \u201cBehold the\nLamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The crucified one was raised up; he is the living Lord of\nall creation, who like light exploding in the darkness, breaks through space\nand time to reach us in our darkness, to give us light now and for eternity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He comes by the means<\/strong> of the folly of what we preach.\nIn the folly of what we preach, he is really present here today. It is done. It\nis finished. He renders judgment. He gives faith. As Luther writes in his Small\nCatechism:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe that by my own\nunderstanding or strength<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I cannot believe in Jesus\nChrist, my Lord, or come to him,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

but instead the Holy Spirit has\ncalled me through the gospel,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

enlightened me with his gifts,\nand made me holy <\/p>\n\n\n\n

and kept me in the true faith.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You see, preaching is in a way like a citizenship\nceremony, an adoption ceremony, or the verdict rendered in a criminal\ncourtroom. A judgment is announced; life is changed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christ is living and here with us, by means<\/strong> of his\nWord to convict of sin and convince of grace. We are guilty but made free. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because he did it by himself, without our help, it is\ndone.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our salvation is certain. We are free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Free in this world to live as forgiven sinners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Free to use our heads in the battles of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Free to proclaim his Lordship and kingdom to come. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has taken care of \u201cforever\u201d for us. It is done.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding,\nkeep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Have you ever been to naturalization ceremony for new citizens? Or seen one on TV? <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In Canada citizenship ceremonies happen at NHL games. A red carpet is laid out on the ice. The new immigrants walk out to the middle of the arena. The official reads some words and pronounces the new immigrants to be Canadian citizens. The crowd stands, cheers, and hollers: \u201cWelcome to Canada!\u201d One immigrant said the relief, joy, and sense of belonging she felt that day are unforgettable.<\/p>\n

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