How Can You Know?

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! The resurrection of the Lord’s only Son tells us that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. Jesus Christ is God’s good news for sinful souls. That is our heavenly Father’s message for today: Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, and your Savior, as well.

Regular listeners to The Lutheran Hour know that when I start to talk to you I normally tell a story. Sometimes I tell a number of them. Some of the stories are true; some are not. Some of them are designed to tug at your heartstrings, others are told to bring a smile to your face. But today, I don’t have a story. Today the message begins with one sentence, eight words: Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.

Now, having said those words, I know a number of things have just happened. Most of you counted to make sure there were eight words in the sentence. Satisfied? Good. Another thing which happened is some of you, those of you who acknowledge Jesus as your Savior, thought, “I already know that. I’ve known that since I was baptized,” or whenever it was that the Holy Spirit called you to faith in the Christ. Now, if you already know Jesus Christ is the world’s Savior and your Redeemer from sin, I’m going ask you to do something. I don’t know as how, in the three years I’ve been preaching on The Lutheran Hour, that I’ve ever asked you to do something. That’s why I’m not ashamed to request that you believers, for the rest of this message, think about all the people in your circle of friends, in your family, at your work, who don’t know Jesus; or who have forgotten Him; or who have been slowly slipping away from Him. I want you to think about them; I want you to see their faces; and I want you to pray for them.

Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. As I said, whenever those words are spoken, a number of things happen. Some people, like the Christians I’ve just been talking to, take that truth as a given. Each of them has, somehow, somewhere, sometime in their lives, recognized that they were sinners. The Holy Spirit brought them to the realization that no matter how good they tried to be, they weren’t good enough to please God. That was a discouraging moment for them. Even worse was the knowledge that no matter how hard they tried, no matter how many promises they made, perfection was always out of their grasp. Sure, they had minor victories here and there; a temptation beaten down one day; a vice conquered for a few moments on another. Still, they made no real progress. It was then, when they realized they were helpless sinners; the Holy Spirit showed them their Savior, Jesus.

Although they may have heard Jesus’ life-giving name many times before, it was when God’s law convinced and convicted them of their sin, that they saw Jesus, perhaps for the first time, as their Savior. It was then they saw His love, His sacrifice, the sins, their sins, that He carried to His cross. They saw how Jesus took upon Himself the punishment they deserved; how Jesus, the innocent, had been punished for them, the guilty. They saw how He had died in their stead, and through His resurrection had given, and guaranteed to them, the Father’s forgiveness. Yes, belief and joy and praise and gratitude are just a few of the things which happen in the heart of a believer when he hears the sentence: “Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.”

But there are others of you who don’t share those feelings. Your reaction is quite different when you hear the sentence, “Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.” Was there a flash of anger; was there a sad sigh of frustration? Did you say, or think the words, “I don’t have to listen to that stuff again, do I?” What was your reaction? Did you recall all the conversations you’ve had with Christians which didn’t go anywhere; which ended in shouting matches? Well, I’m not going to shout. Did you think of a Christian whose life, whose actions and attitudes were so out of character for a disciple of the Savior, that it shut the door of your heart to anything, any message which carries Christ’s holy name? Did you think, “This is stupid. Why can’t they just leave me alone?” Did your blood pressure go up? Was there a flush on your face? Did you look around to find an escape from what you thought was coming? Did you think you’ve been cornered; that you’ve been caught in a well-meaning, but, to your way of thinking, misdirected trap? I understand all of these things.

Now, if I’ve been somewhat close in my description of what you’ve been thinking or feeling or saying, won’t you be patient with me; won’t you invest just a few minutes to hear what I’m going to say? How many minutes? No more than twelve. And, if all goes as the Lord intends, these next minutes, rather than being wasted, could, by God’s grace, be the most important, life-changing, soul-saving minutes of your life.

Still with me? I hope so. Now, before I go farther, I’d like to get a few things straight. First, I’m not selling you anything. I’m not advertising any holy anointing oil, any holy spring water, holy hankies, or holy anything else. Nor am I going to ask you for money. Oh, sure, it costs money to keep this broadcast on the air. For 75 years it’s cost money; but I’m not asking you for yours. The people who already know Jesus, who want everybody to know the joy of sins forgiven have always been, and continue to be, very generous. Because of their generosity, I’m not going to put the touch on you. Second, you should know, I’m not building a church that you have to pay for; I’m not driving an expensive car; my wife, children, and cousins are not on the payroll of this organization and I have absolutely no political agendas or aspirations. I thought that might make a difference to you as you listen to the next few minutes. I want you to know that what I’m going to say is for you, not for me.

I want you to know, I’m not trying to take anything from you. I’m trying to give something to you. What I want to give is the simple sentence: Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. Now, don’t get all defensive on me. Don’t get angry. It’s just a sentence. I just want to talk to you about that sentence. Look logically at those words: Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. Here’s what I think. I think, if those words are true as I believe, then faith in Jesus is the only way that you can be forgiven and saved. If those words are true, as the Bible says they are, then only through Jesus’ innocent blood, can you be washed of your sins and be given eternal life. On the other side of the coin, if those words are not true, completely, totally, absolutely true, then I, and many other believers, are wrong. I’d better find another job; believers had better find another way to God. If those words are wrong, then Jesus is not God’s Son; He didn’t carry our sins; He didn’t rise from the dead; and there isn’t going to be a great, unending believers’ reunion in heaven. Did I miss anything? Is there a third choice? I can’t think of any. Either Jesus is the Savior of the world as He claims, or He is not.

Back in my questioning days – no, I wasn’t born with a clerical collar around my neck, I was once a questioner like you – back in my questioning days I thought: Wouldn’t it be great if I could be a time traveler. I mean, if I could go back to Bethlehem and hear the angels the night Jesus was born; if I could see Jesus’ miracles; if I could ask Him some pointed questions; if I could see Him die, check His pulse; if I could follow along and watch His burial; if I could pitch a tent outside His tomb from Good Friday to resurrection Sunday. If I could stand with the disciples and watch Him ascend into heaven; then, then I would be persuaded, then I would know. But time travel is probably not going to happen in my lifetime; and if it did, I probably wouldn’t be able to afford it. So, the question remains, “How can we be sure?”

You’re not the first person to ask that question. Already in the first century of the church people were asking: “How can we be sure?” You see, within a few years of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, a group of people came forward with, what they claimed, were “new” revelations and a “new” message. These so-called revelations said Jesus hadn’t really been a man at all. They said Jesus hadn’t died or risen. They said, people aren’t sinners; they don’t need forgiveness and they don’t need a Savior. People were confused by these new revelations, just like you might be confused when you hear New Age messages coming out of many colleges and churches. You’ve heard these new revelations: Jesus is a good guy, but that doesn’t make Him God’s personification of grace; Jesus said many nice things, good things, wise things, but no thing which would make Him God’s Son, our Savior – as if we need a Savior. Those people back then, just like you this morning, wanted to know: What is true? What can I believe? They wanted answers to the questions: Is Jesus Christ the Savior of the world? And: Must my faith always be founded on some shoddy, shaky opinion? Like you, they wanted to know, “How can I be sure?”

You might be surprised that God gives evidence to their questions as well as yours. God’s evidence comes in the form of a letter written by an old man by the name of John. John was one of the Savior’s original apostles. He was almost a human time machine. You see, John was the last, and the only one of Jesus’ apostles who was not martyred. Long after these other men who knew Jesus intimately had died, God had preserved John – preserved him so he could give evidence, so he could answer, for once and for all your question, “How can I be sure?” By the direction and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, John, in his first letter to Christians, said, “I write these things … that you may know that you have eternal life.” Did you get that? John wants you to know that in Jesus Christ there is eternal life. He doesn’t want you to guess, or think, or have a remote hope that Jesus is your Savior. He wants you to know. So that you might know, John wrote about those things which he had heard, which he had seen with his own eyes, that he had touched with his own hands.

You see, John had been there, when Jesus called a Samaritan women away from her sins. He had been there when Jesus healed a man who had been an invalid for almost four decades. John had been there when Jesus fed the thousands with a few loaves and fishes; he had been there when Jesus gave sight to a blind man; when Jesus called a dead Lazarus back to life and out of his tomb. John had been there when a man possessed by a demon was cured. He had been there to see Jesus walk on water, calm a storm, and visit with Moses and Elijah. John had been in the Garden of Gethsemane as Jesus was crushed to the ground as He received the weight of the world’s sins. John had been there when an innocent Jesus had been arrested, tried, beaten, condemned. John had been there to see his Savior crucified. He had been close enough to hear the Savior, through His pain, speak words of forgiveness to those who had placed Him on that cruel gibbet of death. John had been there as a Roman spear was thrust into his Savior’s heart, and he had seen that blood and water had come out – a sure certain sign of death.

So you might know Jesus is your Savior, John recorded the life and death of the Christ. But it’s not just the story of a miraculous life that John shared; nor does his narrative end with the burial of an innocent man. So you might know that Jesus Christ is God’s Son sent to save you from sin, John also recorded Jesus’ resurrection victory which took place three days after His lifeless body had been placed into a borrowed tomb. John can present God’s evidence of your salvation because John was there. John was the first man to stand at the entrance of Jesus’ empty tomb and the second one to enter the borrowed sepulcher. In that vacant grave, John saw, in the empty burial cloths, proof that Jesus’ body had not been stolen, proof that His body had not been moved by a gardener; proof that said Jesus Christ had, beyond any shadow of a doubt, conquered sin, death, and Satan.

But there is more to John’s evidence than strips of linen in an empty tomb. John, in his Gospel, continued to tell of what he had seen with his eyes, what he had touched with his hands. John’s narrative continued as he told how Jesus, a living Jesus, appeared to the disciples in a locked room. So you might know, John told of how, in that upper room, Jesus had showed them His crucifixion wounds; how Jesus had breathed upon them. So you might know, John recorded how a week later, Jesus came again and showed Himself to the disciple who, like you, needed proof. John had been there when Jesus told that doubting disciple: “Here, feel free; touch My hands, My side. ” John shared these things, and many others, which he had seen and heard. Indeed, John even wrote down the words of Jesus, who, before He ascended into heaven, entrusted to His Church the sharing of His story of salvation with a lost world; with questioning souls; with people like you who want to be sure.

Which is why, this day, I can say to all of you who have a questioning mind: You can be sure: Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. And not just the world’s Savior; He’s your Savior, too. To rescue you from the penalty of sin is why He was born, lived, died, and rose. Be sure that right now the angels in heaven wait for His Gospel truth to become your truth. Right now the Holy Spirit is working upon your heart, calling you by the Gospel, so you might know Jesus as Savior and Lord. Right now people, people who love you, and some people who don’t even know you, are praying for you. While you listen to this message or read this manuscript, the loving prayers of people concerned about your eternal home are, on your behalf, being whispered in God’s ear. They want you to know the most important thing you will ever know; they want you to believe the greatest thing you will ever believe: Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world – and He is your Savior, too.

So that’s the message for today. Not a single story. I do miss them. We’ll have to go back to telling them again soon. A message without a single story. You know, that isn’t exactly right, is it? There is a story here -a true story dealing with the great themes of life and death, heaven and hell, salvation and damnation. We do have a story here, a personal story, a story whose ending remains unwritten. At the risk of sounding hokey, the story I’m telling is yours. Look, I don’t know you, but I know your story. It’s plain to me. I see you standing at a fork in the road of your spiritual life. On one path, calling, pleading, beckoning you forward are those who have a proven track record of loving you. I can see your gracious God; I can see the angels who are just waiting for you to give them an excuse to celebrate. Angels do that, you know, when someone, someone like you, says, “Jesus Christ is the world’s Savior, and He’s my Savior, too.” And, of course, on that path, I can see a person who is praying for you. That’s a very special person, that one. Is it a parent, a child, a spouse, a dear friend? How long have they been waiting, praying for you? A long time, I think.

And who is it there on the other path? I can only make out some dark forms hiding in the shadows. I hear them calling you, but they don’t want to move into the light; they don’t want to be seen, do they? Help me, won’t you? Tell me, who would want you to walk away from forgiveness, from faith, from a Savior? If they really love you, why do they hide in the darkness? Do they want you to join them in that darkness? Tell me.

Well, that’s your story, and I don’t know its ending. It’s not really important that you tell me. It’s enough that heaven knows, and it would be very nice if that person who has been praying for you for so long would be given a glimpse into your heart as well. It’s not hard. All you have to do is turn to them and say, “I’d like to meet your Savior. I want Him to be my Savior, too.” Or, if you don’t think you have someone praying for you, call us at The Lutheran Hour. We’ll be glad to pray with you, and, besides, I’d like to know how your story turns out. Amen.

LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for April 23, 2006
TOPIC: My Wedding?

ANNOUNCER: Now, Pastor Ken Klaus responds to a listener’s questions. I’m Mark Eischer

KLAUS: Good morning, Mark. And, I assume you have a question for us today.

ANNOUNCER: Several, in fact-all having to do with weddings. A bride-to-be says she’s wondering about all the rules her church has set up. Her pastor gave her a long list of things they could and could not do.

KLAUS: Such as?

ANNOUNCER: Well, for example, the pastor told her they couldn’t use certain music in the service. And this was a particular piece of music that she’d always dreamed of walking down the aisle to. He also told her that the groomsmen were not allowed to drink beer before the service, not even in their cars parked out on the street. And he said the guests can’t throw rice, and there would an extra charge if they threw birdseed instead.

KLAUS: So what is her question?

ANNOUNCER: Take your pick. Well, I think, this is what she finishes with, “Am I wrong? This is my wedding,” she says, “and while I respect my pastor, does he, does the church, have the right to tell me what I can or cannot do-at my wedding?”

KLAUS: Yup, no getting around it. There are a few questions there.

ANNOUNCER: Well, which one should we take first?

KLAUS: How about the one about: “Does the pastor and church have the right to say what is allowed and what is not?” The short answer is, “Yes, they do.” The longer answer gives the reason. Pastors and congregations are aware, or at least they should be, that a wedding is, first and foremost, a worship service.

ANNOUNCER: And are we worshiping God-or the bride?

KLAUS: I’m not going to touch that. No, I will. It’s God. You know, these services are in some ways a little more personal and specific; funerals are the same way. They still are a congregational event where people come together to ask God’s blessing, to thank Him for His work in the life of these individuals. Sometimes families forget the corporate worship part of what is happening at those events.

ANNOUNCER: It sounds to me like you’re speaking from experience.

KLAUS: Well, you know, I do remember a funeral, which is also like a wedding in the fact that it’s personal. It was one of my first, where I asked the mourning family if the deceased had any special hymns they would like to have played in the service. They did. They requested, “Home On The Range.” I laughed. And I looked around at the family and they didn’t.

ANNOUNCER: Did you have the congregation sing it?

KLAUS: No. “Home On The Range” is a great song, but not really appropriate for a church setting. They had somebody sing it at the dinner afterwards. And the same thing is true in regard to music at a wedding. There is some music, very familiar music, which, for a variety of reasons is probably not the best for a Christian wedding, especially when there are so many great Christian pieces that are far better.

ANNOUNCER: Now, what about that “rice” thing? What’s the reason for not letting people throw rice?

KLAUS: You know, Mark, throwing rice is derived from an ancient fertility rite. When people throw rice, they are saying, “We hope you are blessed with children.” I don’t know what it means when people throw instant rice!

At any rate, there are a few problems with rice or birdseed. First, it can be dangerous. Unless it is cleaned up right away, rice or birdseed make for a pretty hazardous surface for people to walk on. The other problem with throwing stuff is that the custodian has to spend a fair amount of time cleaning up afterwards. Which is why some churches have an additional charge if people want to throw stuff.

ANNOUNCER: I suppose what we’re saying here today also applies to other situations.

KLAUS: It does, Mark. Look, I, and most pastors, understand that a wedding day is very special. Brides, and sometimes grooms think about that day, plan for that day, and I hope, pray about that day. No pastor wants to ruin that special occasion by creating a multitude of arbitrary rules. They try to strike a balance between what is asked for and what is safe, reasonable, respectable, and proper. Just for the record, beer, even if it is on the street, doesn’t fit any of those criteria. Some things we can bend on, others we can’t. It’s at those times, when we can’t bend, that I pray the bride and groom will understand the pastor and elders are answering not just to them, but to the entire congregation and God.

ANNOUNCER: And keeping in mind also that a Christian wedding is ultimately a symbol of the relationship between Christ and His bride, the Church.

KLAUS: Yeah, and when you look at it that way, it really helps clarify and put into perspective some of those issues.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.

Music selections for this program:

“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by John Leavitt. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC

“That Easter Day with Joy Was Bright” arranged by Henry Gerike. Used by permission