05/24/2020
Invocation and Verses for the Ascension
In the name of the Father and of the ✙ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets. [Psalm 47:5]
God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. [Psalm 47:8]
The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble.� [Psalm 99:1a]
He sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake. [Psalm 99:1b]
Alleluia! The King ascends to heaven: O come, let us worship him.
Prayer of the Day (page 39)
P: Almighty God, your Son our Savior was taken up in glory and intercedes for us at your right hand. Through your living and abiding Word, give us hearts to know him and faith to follow where he has gone; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
LESSONS FROM THE WORD OF GOD
The First Lesson: Acts 1:1-14 —
I wrote my first book, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began doing and teaching 2until the day he was taken up, after he had given instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3After he had suffered, he presented himself alive to the apostles with many convincing proofs. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and told them things about the kingdom of God. 4Once, when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for what the Father promised, which you heard from me. 5For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” 6So when they were together with him, they asked, “Lord, is this the time when you are going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7He said to them, “It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has set by his own authority. 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9After he said these things, he was taken up while they were watching, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10They were looking intently into the sky as he went away. Suddenly, two men in white clothes stood beside them. 11They said, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking up into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” 12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called the Mount of Olives, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13When they entered the city, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. Peter and John were there, also James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. 14All of them kept praying together with one mind, along with the women, with Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
Epistle Lesson: 1 Peter 4:12-17; 5:6-11—
12Dear friends, do not be surprised by the fiery trial that is happening among you to test you, as if something strange were happening to you. 13Instead rejoice whenever you are sharing in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. 14If you are insulted in connection with the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, a thief, a criminal, or as a meddler. 16But if you suffer for being a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God in connection with this name. 17For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God. Now if it begins with us, what will be the end for those who disobey the gospel of God? 5:6Therefore humble yourselves under God’s powerful hand so that he may lift you up at the appointed time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. 8Have sound judgment. Be alert. Your adversary, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him by being firm in the faith. You know that the same kinds of sufferings are being laid on your brotherhood all over the world. 10After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you into his eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you. 11To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.
The Verse of the Day (page 40)
P: Alleluia. Alleluia. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Alleluia. (John 14:23)
Gospel Lesson: John 17:1-11a—
After Jesus had spoken these things, he looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you. 2For you gave him authority over all flesh, so that he may give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you sent. 4I have glorified you on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. 5Now, Father, glorify me at your own side with the glory I had at your side before the world existed. 6“I revealed your name to the men you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me, and they have held on to your word. 7Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8For I gave them the words you gave me, and they received them. They learned the truth that I came from you. They believed that you sent me. 9“I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, because they are yours. 10All that is mine is yours, and what is yours is mine. And I am glorified in them. 11I am no longer going to be in the world, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you.”
C: ♫ Praise be to you, O Christ!
Sermon Hymn: 428 “Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me”
1 Why should cross and trial grieve me? Christ is near With his cheer; Never will he leave me.
Who can rob me of the heaven That God's Son For me won When his life was given?
2 When life's troubles rise to meet me, Though their weight May be great, They will not defeat me.
God, my loving Savior, sees them; He who knows All my woes Knows how best to end them.
3 God gives me my days of gladness, And I will Trust him still When he sends me sadness.
God is good; his love attends me Day by day, Come what may, Guides me and defends me.
The Greeting: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he gave us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” (1 Peter 1:3, EHV)
Sermon Text: 1 Peter 4:12-17; 5:6-11
Dear fellow redeemed of Christ Jesus: Several decades ago a Rabbi Kushner wrote a book entitled, When Bad Things Happen to Good People. The nagging question, “why do bad things happen to good people,” still lingers in people’s minds. We yearn for heaven here on earth and so we wonder why bad things happen. Every time a disaster or epidemic happens people question the seeming contradiction between the existence of a loving God and the presence of evil in the world.
This sermon text answers that question, in part. The first part speaks of the “bad things that happen.” It is written to warn about the escalation of fiery trials that are bound to happen to Christians. The second half reminds of the loving God promises to be beside us now and into eternity when the “bad things” happen. We are invited to humble ourselves and call upon Christ Jesus to help us face the devil and anxiety when bad things happen.
Peter writes to Christians to not be surprised if fiery trials come to them because of their faith. Persecutions broke out in various places in the Roman Empire during the first couple of centuries of the church. Peter himself would be put to death by crucifixion, in Rome, under Emperor Nero a few years after he wrote his epistles. And, the suffering and the persecution have continued to this day. That should surprise anyone who knows the words of Jesus, “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.” [Mat. 24:9]
Did you hear what Peter says about fiery trials. “12Dear friends, do not be surprised by the fiery trial that is happening among you to test you, as if something strange were happening to you.” Do not be surprised! We like good surprises such as the stimulus check from the government while we shelter at home from the coronavirus. Or, maybe a surprise phone call from family or an old friend who reaches out during the present quarantine. But there are also the bad surprises. After the heavy winds and rain you discover the roof leaks. A close friend or family member dies in a car accident. These fiery trials are totally predictable for people who bear the name of “Christian.” People hated Jesus and they will hate the people who follow Jesus and love his words.
The truth of that is still with us today. Reach beyond the mainstream media and you will find accounts of Christians crucified and beheaded, literally, in various places around the world today. Muslim jihadists are violently persecuting and killing Christians, in parts of the Middle East, in Africa, and in other Islamic lands. Not as violent, but in China, the government is removing crosses from church buildings. In Europe and America, things are a little more subdued. We may not face imprisonment or death — not yet — but popular culture and even our government have turned against Christianity.
Make no mistake: Christians do experience suffering and persecution. The world will bring it upon us. The devil will bring it. But, do not bring suffering upon yourselves because of the bad things you do. “15Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, a thief, a criminal, or as a meddler.” If you kill someone, or steal someone’s money or sell drugs, you cannot complain about the suffering you may experience because you are spending time in jail. Peter even adds the problem of meddling in other people’s affairs. You have heard the saying, “Mind your own business.” People who enjoy meddling in the affairs of others risk losing friends and even being disliked by others. The suffering that comes from doing bad does not bring glory to the name of Jesus. It brings shame on the name of Jesus when Christians do not live up to what Jesus has done for them.
In contrast to heaping shame on Jesus, how beautiful it is when Christians suffer for the name of Jesus, thereby glorify Christ, and point other people to the blessings they have in him. Peter says “16But if you suffer for being a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God in connection with this name.” Christians who suffer fiery trials for Jesus should not be ashamed of what they are going through for the name of Jesus. He said if we want to follow him we should deny ourselves and take up our cross and follow him. [Mat. 10:38] That is an honor that draws attention to Christ and helps others come to believe in him. “We bear about in our bodies the dying of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Why is suffering and pain so important for exalting Christ? Listen to the answer: “17For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God. Now if it begins with us, what will be the end for those who disobey the gospel of God?” Do you want the Lord to exercise the recurring sin troubles you? Do you allow him to train you, change you, and thrust you into different circumstances if necessary to get rid of sin? If we want God to cleanse and sanctify us and rid us of sin in our lives what is going to happen to people who do not believe in Christ, who do not have his holy blood to wash them clean and his robe of righteousness to cover them? If my suffering for Christ, or my cross that I bear for him, or my shame that I endure because of what I believe causes me pain but exalts the name of Christ, then bring it on! It will all be worth it if my pain helps one more person escape from the judgment to come. With Paul we can confidently say, “For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” [Phi. 1:21]
We should not be surprised if the Lord uses our suffering to advance the glory of his name, and we should also not be surprised at how the Lord will deliver us from even the worst things that could happen to us. The Lord will be there to deliver us just as just as he promises us in his Word. Peter invites us, “5:6Therefore humble yourselves under God’s powerful hand so that he may lift you up at the appointed time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.”
Humility is the most elusive of Christian virtues. If you attest to it, then you have lost it. God alone can look at humility without ruining it. Even as Christians, pride easily flares up. Once we rely on ourselves, then trouble follows. It is easy to think, “I got myself into this mess; I can get myself out of it.” But like a horse in quicksand, all your strength only sinks you deeper into guilt and sin. Notice it says that we can cast our cares on him. That word for “cast” is used for throwing something onto an animal. If a load was too heavy to carry, people put their burdens onto a donkey or horse. How many times in your life did you not cast your burden onto someone else when you were having problems? May we never grow weary of hearing brothers and sister in Christ say, “it is in the Lord’s hands,” especially in times of pain and fiery trials. We can humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand because he cares even more than our friends in Christ. He promises us, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you: I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” [Isa. 41:10]
During the times of fiery trials, the devil is especially active and powerful. He takes advantage of our low moments to attack us, the way a lion looks for the weakest animal at the watering hole to attack. He knows us better than we know ourselves. “8Have sound judgment. Be alert. Your adversary, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” The devil whispers in your ear, “None of these struggles and suffering would be necessary if I did not follow Christ. Who needs to deal with the pain and the struggle in the mud and muck of this life beneath a cross that simply crushes me? Even if I do bear it, why bear that cross gladly or willingly or even joyfully?” The seductive voice of temptation lulls you and me into thinking that we could be “free” without the cost of following Christ.
But, we are not alone. Our friends in Christ Jesus are undergoing similar attacks, and it will only get worse as the Last Day approaches. We gather together like a military platoon to support one another against the enemy. The Letter to the Hebrews invites us to “hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” [Heb. 10:23,24]
You see, Peter is giving us Christians courage and hope and confidence, even in the midst of sufferings and trials, as we have heard throughout this series on 1 Peter. You have reasons to take courage, in Christ. You have cause for hope, in Christ. You have glory awaiting you, at the coming of Christ. And you have God beside you, even now, caring for you, watching over you, strengthening you for whatever ordeal may come your way. This is how and why we can rejoice, we can consider ourselves blessed, we can glorify God, even in the midst of sufferings.
What an honor and privilege it is to end this sermon about going through fiery trials with the final verses from our text. Listen as I read these words again, “10After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you into his eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you.”
And this is where the glory and suffering paired up in our Gospel reading for today comes in. In John 17, Jesus himself uses the ideas of glory and suffering, paired up, over and over again in his high priestly prayer to his Father: “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you … 3This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you sent … 5Now, Father, glorify me at your own side with the glory I had at your side before the world existed. Amen.
The Votum: “May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all.” (2 Thessalonians 3:16, EHV)
Apostles’ Creed (page 41)
LORD’S PRAYER
A Hymn: 171 “A Hymn of Glory Let Us Sing”
1 A hymn of glory let us sing! New songs throughout the world shall ring:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Christ, by a road before untrod, Ascends unto the throne of God.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
4 ""You see him now, ascending high Up to the portals of the sky.""
Alleluia! Alleluia!
""Hereafter Jesus you shall see Returning in great majesty.""
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
5 Be now our joy on earth, O Lord, And be our future great reward.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Then, throned with you forever, we Shall praise your name eternally.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
6 O risen Christ, ascended Lord, All praise to you let earth accord.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
You are, while endless ages run, With Father and with Spirit one.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!"
Blessing (page 44)
The grace of our Lord ✙ Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
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