"God's Powerful Holy Word Gives Pentecost Its Powerful Holy Meaning"
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. [Amen.]
"Thy strong word did cleave the darkness;
At Thy speaking it was done.
For created light we thank Thee,
While Thine ordered seasons run.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia, alleluia! Alleluia without end!
"Thy strong word bespeaks us righteous;
Bright with Thine own holiness,
Glorious now, we press toward glory,
And our lives our hopes confess.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost sent!
Alleluia, alleluia! Alleluia without end!"
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
578:1, 3)
First Reading................................................ Acts 2:1-21
(Esp. 5-8, 12-13)
5Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation
under heaven. 6And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were
bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.
7And they were amazed and astonished, saying, "Are not all these who are
speaking Galileans? 8And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own
native language? 9Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of
Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome,
11both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians-we hear them telling in our
own tongues the mighty works of God." 12And all were amazed and perplexed,
saying to one another, "What does this mean?" 13But others mocking said,
"They are filled with new wine."
Prologue: [Tomorrow / Today] is "The Day of Pentecost" in the liturgical
church year calendar. An accurate explanation of it is that "The Church
lives and moves and has her being through the gracious inspiration of the
Holy Spirit. Without God's Spirit, no one could come to Christ or believe
in Him. The fifty-day celebration of Easter ends with this joyous festival.
The risen and ascended Savior has sent the Holy Spirit to be our Sanctifier,
entering our hearts at Holy Baptism, nurturing us through the Word, and
enabling us to understand the Gospel and to live a life that honors God and
serves our neighbor." (Treasury of Daily Prayer. Scott A. Kinnaman, Gen.
Ed. Copyright © 2008 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 330.)
Before Christ ascended back to His heavenly home ten days prior to
Pentecost, He told His disciples, "I am sending the promise of my Father
upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on
high." (Luke 24:49 ESV)
Different people define and demonstrate power in different and
diverse ways. For instance, some people define and demonstrate physical
power by personal muscle mass and tone, health and vitality, and
coordination and endurance. Others define and demonstrate mental power by
intellectual sharpness and academic performance, wisdom and problem solving
ability, and use of vocabulary and proper grammar. Still others define and
demonstrate economic power by checking and saving accounts balances and
successful investments, financial stability and absence of or minimal
indebtedness, and shrewd use of the financial resources with which God
blesses them.
Of course, we often find power in whom we know, not what we know
or who we are. However, omnipotence is one of God's many attributes that
reveal who He is. Yahweh declared to Pharaoh, "But for this purpose I have
raised you up, to show you my power . ." (Ex 9:16 ESV) and Jesus informed
His disciples regarding the Last Day, "And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in clouds with great power and glory." (Mark 13:26 ESV)
The professional sports realm defines and demonstrates power by
astutely combining all three elements of physicality, mentality, and
economy. The St. Louis Cardinals exemplified that when they demonstrated
that they were the most powerful major league baseball team last year by
persevering throughout the 162-game regular season, successfully navigating
the National League playoffs, and finally winning the 2011 World Series.
For many decades the United States of America has enjoyed the
prominent position as the most powerful nation in the world, largely due to
the many military men and women who sacrificed their lives in the fields of
battle and whom we gratefully remember for such this Memorial Day weekend.
Sadly, our spiritual, moral, economic, and military decline may well result
in a loss of that status.
The power that we consider in the context of this created world
pales in comparison with and contrast to the power of Almighty God's
powerful holy word. Its intrinsic power is overwhelmingly more powerful
than the physical, mental, and intellectual power of any individual person
and, in fact, all human beings collectively that have ever lived in the
past, are living in the present, and will yet live in the future. Today's
Old Testament Reading illustrated that when Ezekiel reported, "And as I
prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came
together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on
them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. So I
prophesied as [Yahweh Adonai] commanded me, and the breath came into them,
and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army." (Ezek
37:7b-8a, 10 ESV)
Today's sermon text that's taken from the Second Reading gives us
a glimpse of such power as we witness through reading and hearing this
narrative account the fact that .
"God's Powerful Holy Word Gives Pentecost Its Powerful Holy Meaning."
Now, let's recall the two meanings that define the word "Word" in
the Bible. First, "Word" (especially when preceded by "Holy") usually
refers to the literary content of that sacred book, especially the Gospel
message about which a psalmwriter declared, "[God's] Word is a lamp to my
feet and a light to my path." (Ps 119:105 ESV) Second, "Word" also refers
to Jesus Christ, who is the center and focus of that sacred book's content
and about whom Saint John stated, ". the Word became flesh and dwelt among
us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth." (John 1:14 ESV)
God revealed in His written Holy Word that He initially displayed
His powerful verbal word when He spoke into existence this world and all its
contents during the six days of creation. "The Word [that] became flesh and
dwelt among us" (John 1:14 ESV) also displayed His divine powerful holy word
when He provided drink for the thirsty and food for the hungry, healed the
ill and repaired the infirm, and raised the dead back to life all with His
powerful spoken holy word. Today God's Holy Word produces faith in the
hearts of mankind, cleanses sin-sick souls with the declaration of
absolution, transforms plain H2O into "the washing of rebirth and renewal by
the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5, ESV), and consecrates simple bread and wine
that then transport the real body and blood of Jesus Christ to us according
to Saint Paul's proclamation, "The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not
a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not
a participation in the body of Christ?" (1 Cor 10:16 ESV) Of course, he
based that on Christ's own words of institution, "Take, eat; this is my
body. . Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant . ."
(Matt 26:26-28 ESV)
The miracle in today's sermon text that resulted in the disciples
being able to speak in foreign languages that they had not previously
studiously learned prompted the familiar Lutheran question, "What does this
mean?" (Acts 2:12 ESV) The initial answer was the feeble incorrect
explanation of alcohol-induced drunkenness. The factual explanation,
however, was that .
I. The Holy Spirit Enables the Proclaiming of God's Holy Word. (1-4)
1When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place.
2And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and
it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3And divided tongues as
of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4And they were all
filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the
Spirit gave them utterance.
There's ample evidence in God's Holy Word that the Holy Spirit
enables men to publicly proclaim God's Word by speaking and writing it.
Jesus told His disciples, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your
remembrance all that I have said to you." (John 14:26 ESV) and in today's
Gospel Reading, "But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the
Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear
witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been
with me from the beginning ... ." (John 15:26-27 ESV) Saint Paul declared
that "All Scripture is breathed out by God . ." (2 Tim 3:16 ESV) And, Saint
Peter testified that ". no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man,
but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." (2
Peter 1:21 ESV)
The Church's confessional standard (although some pastors and
congregations practice contrary to it) is "that no one should publicly teach
in the Church, or administer the Sacraments, without a rightly ordered
call." (The Augsburg Confession [1577] in Concordia, The Lutheran
Confessions: A Reader's Edition of the Book of Concord. Paul Timothy
McCain, General Editor. Copyright © 2005, 2006 Concordia Publishing House,
St. Louis, MO. Page 41.) In light of that, the Holy Spirit also enables
today's legitimate public preachers such as Pastor Marks and me in this
local worship setting and some televangelists over the radio and television
to proclaim God's Holy Word. However, the validity of such messages is
determined by whether or not they're consistent with God's Holy Word.
Sadly, there are illegitimate public preachers and televangelists whose
messages are both inconsistent with and contradictory to God's Holy Word.
That's why it's vitally important for you, the hearers, to "read, mark,
study, learn, and take to heart" God's Holy Word so you can critically
examine what we public preachers and televangelists are saying to determine
whether it's consistent with or contradictory to God's Holy Word. We have
an example of such in Holy Scripture, wherein we read that the Berean
Christians, whom Paul and Silas taught, "received the word with all
eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so."
(Acts 17:11 ESV)
Just what is that legitimate message of God's Holy Word? It's one
that proclaims the "truth [that] is made known in . the Old Testament, which
promises the coming Savior, and the New Testament, which tells of the Savior
who has come." It's one that "must sharply distinguish between the Law and
the Gospel in the Bible." On the one hand, "In the Law God commands good
works of thought, word, and deed and condemns and punishes sin." On the
other hand, "In the Gospel, the good news of our salvation in Jesus Christ,
God gives forgiveness, faith, life and the power to please Him with good
works." (Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation. Copyright © 1986/2008
Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Pages 48, 51f.) That grand and
glorious Gospel message is one in which .
II. God's Spoken Holy Word Proclaims God's Holy Living Word. (14-21)
14But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed
them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to
you, and give ear to my words. 15For these men are not drunk, as you
suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16But this is what was
uttered through the prophet Joel:
17"'And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;
18even on my male servants and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19And I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20the sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of
the Lord shall be saved.'"
The key to the correct understanding of the Bible is none other
than "Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, [who] is the heart and center
of the Scripture and therefore the key to its true meaning." (Ibid. Pages
49f.) Saint Paul emphasized that truth that the Old Testament prophet Joel
initiated when he wrote that "the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his
riches on all who call on him. For 'everyone who calls on the name of the
Lord will be saved.'" (Rom 10:12-13 ESV)
Just what does it mean to "call on the name of the Lord?" First
and foremost it means to "confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and
believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead . ." (Rom 10:9 ESV)
That meaning was extended by today's Gradual, which declared, "[God] will
pour out [his] Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall
prophesy. With the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth
one confesses and is saved." (Acts 2:17b; Rom 10:10 ESV)
Second, and of equal importance, is to partake of the Lord's
Supper worthily by heeding Saint Paul's admonition, "Whoever, therefore,
eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be
guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine
himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who
eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on
himself." (1 Cor 11:27-29 ESV) What that means is that "We receive it
worthily when we have faith in Christ and His words, 'Given and shed for you
for the forgiveness of sins.'" However, "A person is unworthy and
unprepared when he or she does not believe or doubts Christ's words, since
the words 'for you' require all hearts to believe." So, how do we know if
we are worthy or unworthy? "We are to examine ourselves to see whether A.
we are sorry for our sins; B. we believe in our Savior Jesus Christ and in
His words in the Sacrament; [and] C. we plan, with the help of the Holy
Spirit, to change our sinful lives." (Luther's Small Catechism with
Explanation. Page 242.)
In conclusion, therefore, let's make today's Pentecost Collect our
daily passionate prayer, namely, "Grant us in our day by the same Spirit to
have a right understanding in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy
consolation." As we do so, let's keep in mind that portion of today's
Introit that begged, "Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of your love. Alleluia." All of those words
have particular meaning and application because .
"God's Powerful Holy Word Gives Pentecost Its Powerful Holy Meaning."
Throughout our Catechetical preparation to confirm our Baptismal
vows and properly partake of Holy Communion, we asked "What does this mean?"
As happened that first Pentecost and continues to do so today, we boldly
answer that .
I. The Holy Spirit Enables the Proclaiming of God's Holy Word. (1-4)
So it was then that "The believers were . equipped and prepared to
begin carrying out the assignment that the Lord and given to his church.
The dramatic signs-the sound, the fire, the ability to speak in other
tongues-were signs of that. Such signs did not always accompany the
preaching of the apostles or the testimony of other believers. However, the
Spirit sent by Jesus is always present and active when the gospel is spoken.
He gives the Word its power, and he gives believers the power to speak the
Word." (Richard D. Balge in People's Bible Commentary: Acts. Copyright ©
2005 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Pages 23f.) The result
today as it was then is still that .
II. God's Spoken Holy Word Proclaims God's Holy Living Word. (14-21)
That is, "The preaching of Christ, which was begun by the lowly
fishermen of Galilee, has gone out into all the world. And through this
Gospel the exalted Christ, God Himself, is sending, pouring out His Spirit.
The crucified Christ, now exalted to the right hand of God, is the almighty
God. He is gathering unto Himself His Church out of all nations of the
world. Sons and daughters, old and young, servants and maids, receive the
gift of the Holy [Spirit]." (Paul E. Kretzmann in Popular Commentary of the
Bible: The New Testament Volume I. Copyright © Unknown Concordia Publishing
House, St. Louis, MO. Pages 540f.)
God grant it all for the sake of Jesus Christ, His humble Son, our
holy Savior. [Amen.]
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
_______________________________________________
Sermons mailing list
Sermons@cat41.org
http://cat41.org/mailman/listinfo/sermons
