Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! But before Jesus could rise, He first had to die. Today, by God’s grace, we share with every sinful soul, with every troubled conscience, with every hurting heart, God has shown His love for us in this: that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. May the risen Savior and the salvation He has won, touch and save us. Grant this, Lord, unto us all. Amen.
Over the years I’ve lead people on trips to Africa, Europe, and the Mid-East. It is one of life’s great pleasures to watch someone see, up close, a place that they’ve read about in books. But there is another joy that comes in leading such excursions: that of watching people struggle with a new language. While English is close to being a global language, there are still those moments when a person who speaks English only comes face-to-face with an individual who doesn’t understand a single word. When that happens, the results can be amusing. First, the tourist will BEGIN TO SPEAK VERY LOUDLY. Now the odds are pretty good that the person with whom the tourist is trying to communicate isn’t deaf. And while shouting doesn’t help understanding, it sure can scare the daylights out of the native.
Understand, this language problem is not a one way street. Foreigners who come to our country, who try to understand what we’re saying, are frequently put off by our use of “idioms”, expressions which flow through and are part of almost everything we say. Consider the mental images that are created when we say, “I went to the football game and bought a hot dog. It cost me an arm and a leg.” When you say you had a “gut feeling”, a foreigner won’t think you had a premonition; when you said you’ve been on “pins and needles”, a newcomer to the language is going to ask if it was very painful. What does a non-English speaker think when you tell him: “I’d kill for a can of Coke”, or “I’d die to have a chocolate bar.”?
Those last two idioms, expressions, are especially interesting. Let me ask, “What would you kill for?” Some of The Lutheran Hour listeners are absolutely, totally, undeniably, irrevocably committed to a path of non-violence. If someone hits them on one cheek, they will automatically turn the other. Then, after they are hit on both sides of their faces, they begin all over again. For those listeners, the question, “What would you kill for?” is not worthy of consideration. They would never take the life of a mouse or a person; it’s not part of their personality. Even so, the evening news is filled with people who have neither reservation nor hesitation when it comes to committing murder. Suicide bombers; men, women, and more recently children, do their best to snuff out the lives of total strangers eating lunch or as they’er walking to work. Drive-by shootings which end the life of an innocent bystander are the rule rather than the exception to our evening news. Yes, there are people who are ready to murder. They murder for a cause; they murder because of a commitment and some of them murder for the pure pleasure and high it gives them.
Look to the Bible and you will see such an individual being described. Begin in Genesis and you will only have to read a few chapters before you come upon that individual as he plots to bring death to some very nice people: Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve, those were the names of our first ancestors, and by God’s design, they were some very fine folk. The Lord had created them to be innocent, pure, and perfect in every way. To occupy their days God gave them work designed to be fulfilling. It was also far removed from the pain and setbacks that accompanies our labors. Adam and Eve were told to tend a garden that was special because it had no weeds. They were told to love each other as husband and wife. They were told to talk with their Maker Who had given them every good and perfect gift, and they were told to praise Him Who had promised these heaven-sent bounties would never end. You should know, Humanity’s happiness was an unbearable, insufferable offense to Satan. The perfect happiness of God’s children translated into perfect wretchedness for him. No one dare doubt it, the devil was miserable, and as the expression rightly maintains, misery loves company. Which is why, in a cause fueled by his hatred and goaded by his commitment to destroy all that was good and right, Satan set about to destroy God’s perfect people. And, please, never forget, the devil did what he did because doing something really, truly, evil was a pleasurable experience for him.
By inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the ancient prophet records how, in a time long ago and in a world quite unlike ours, the devil began by flattering God’s children and challenging the Lord’s authority. Slyly, sneakily, he made his suggestions. Did he smile as he subtly planted seeds of doubt and distrust and disbelief in their minds? Did he sneer as he watched to see whether they took his bait? Did he snort with delight as his short vigil was rewarded by humankind’s all-too-eager disobedience? That dark day our ancestors disobeyed their Maker and sin swept through creation in a tidal wave of destruction, in a tsunami of death and damnation. Yes, hand-in-hand with humankind’s transgression came the punishment God had said most certainly would follow. Some time before the Lord had warned: “If you sin, you will die.” His admonition wasn’t complicated and it certainly wasn’t confusing. If they sinned, they, and all who would follow after them, would perish.
And so it was. Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit. After they were done, the perfect God sadly looked upon His despoiled son and dishonored daughter. As He did so, He knew He had to be as good as His Word. How could the holy Divinity be any different? In His justice He rightly condemned the man and woman’s disobedience with death. Temporal death in this world, eternal death in the company of the devil whose counsel they had found to be so preferable and acceptable.
And so it was. Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden God had given. They were sent into a world filled with pain and problems; with darkness and depression; with violence and vileness; a world without hope. But wait, that is an overstatement; it goes too far. Because God, looking at His children who were infected with the pestilence of sin and the plague of damnation, was moved. Yes, His justice rightly said, ‘they are getting their right reward.” But God didn’t stop with those words. As He looked upon His damned and dejected children, God was moved by pity and mercy. Pity, mercy and a capacity for unmerited kindness is what separates the God of Christianity from every other deity in every other religion of the world. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit stand unique and matchless in this: along with being just, the Triune God is also a Lord of grace and love.
So many of you who are listening to me have concluded that all religions are alike, that the deities humanity worships are so many interchangeable, mass-produced parts and it makes absolutely no difference what, if anything, you believe. If that is your feeling; if that is what you believe, let me say this, and I’ll say it as nicely and clearly as I can: you are wrong. And if you are inclined to dismiss the opinion of a faceless radio preacher, please, by all means, don’t take my word as the Gospel truth. Since your eternal home, heaven or hell, depends on what you believe, I encourage you, I urge; I plead with you to check me out. Investigate it carefully and completely; examine it out fully and finally. Scrutinize what I am saying, and you will see the all-powerful Triune God agonizing over humanity’s condemned condition. Knowing one generation after another would be headed helplessly to hell and the damnation disobedience deserved, He promised, “I will send Someone to take your place. I will send Someone to live a perfect life; Someone to resist Satan; Someone to die the death you have earned.”
A few minutes ago I asked, ‘What would you kill for?’ Since then we have spoken of Satan who kills for a cause, a commitment, and for the pure sport of the killing. When we started, I also asked, “What would you die for?”, or better yet, “Who would you die for?” Now, in the fifth chapter of the book of Romans, we are given God’s gracious answer to humanity’s need. He says, the Lord ‘shows His love for us in this: while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” That is the truth which gave hope to Adam and Eve when they were banished from the Garden of Eden. That was the hope Moses had when he died in the wilderness. It was the peace that comforted the first martyr, Stephen. God shows His love for us in this: Jesus Christ died for sinners.
Every once in a while I run into people who get considerable enjoyment at poking fun at the Bible. They say it is a ‘horrible book’, filled with ‘horrible people’ who do ‘horrible things’. Like a young boy who scans a novel for the dirty parts, they go through the Bible and dig out terrible tales of inequality and slavery. Delightedly they point to the stories of cruelty and theft and rape and murder and incest and the narration of criminal activities too heinous to be mentioned on a family radio broadcast. In response to those critics I would like to say: “I am so glad you are reading the Bible. I am so glad you have found those stories. Keep on looking. But I pray that as you gaze down into the gutter of humanity’s depravity; as you examine the sins that brought about our damnation, somewhere, somehow, sometime before it is too late, the Holy Spirit may lift up your eyes so you may see Jesus Christ Who is God’s Divine response to humanity’s immorality.
May the Lord of life lead you to the realization He has inspired the Bible to be painted in vivid colors of human perversity and bright shades of spiritual depravity. This He has done so you may be given a penitent heart and see how much you need the Gift of His Son. May the Lord let you look at those human narratives and help you understand these stories are your stories and they are mine. We are the same kind of sinners and we need the same kind of Savior. That is what Paul was trying to say: ‘God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ‘
Have you ever spent a moment thinking what that means? God sacrificed His Son for you. You would never think of letting your son die for a buzzing mosquito, a biting ant, a blood-sucking slug, but that is what the Father did for you. No, that is not right. The difference between us and a bug is far less than the difference that separates God’s innocent Son and we who have been shackled by sin and are subjected to the power of Satan. In spite of that immeasurable gulf between us Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. True man so He could take our place, receive our punishment and die our death; true God so He would resist Satan; fulfill God’s laws and defeat the grave, God showed His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
If you go to Switzerland, they will tell you the story of Arnold von Winkelried who, at the Battle of Sempach, grabbed a host of Austrian spears, pulled them into his chest and allowed his comrades to break the enemy lines and win the battle. Winkelried died for his country. If you speak to a member of the Native American tribe, the Cheyenne, they will tell you of a 15-year-old Dog Soldier named Little Hawk. On July 11, 1869, at Summit Springs, Colorado, his village was attacked. Little Hawk had a chance to escape. Instead of saving himself, Little Hawk stood fast, and through his bravery he allowed the escape of many women and children. Remembering his death, someone said, he threw “his life away for the People, as a brave man should.” On December 4, 2006 an enemy grenade landed in the Humvee where PFC Ross McGinnis was manning a machine gun. McGinnis could have jumped. He didn’t. Instead he used his back to smother the explosive. The President of the United States gave a posthumous Medal of Honor to the private’s parents. At that ceremony he said, “America will always honor the name of this brave soldier who gave his all for his country…”
Almost every culture, every society, every generation, boasts of their heroes, noble men and women who gave themselves for noble causes. But Jesus Christ is unique. It can honestly be said, with only the rarest of exceptions, from the beginning of His life until the moment He breathed His last, Jesus Christ was misunderstood, misinterpreted, and maligned; He was seldom respected and often rejected. Still, it is for the very people who didn’t want Him, who hated Him; who detested and despised Him that Jesus was born. Search the annals of history and you will not stumble upon anyone like the Savior. In Jesus, the Innocent is traded for the guilty; the Perfect for the flawed; the Eternal for the temporal; the King for the commoner. It is unimaginable and unthinkable, but it is nevertheless the truth. Scripture declares it: God has shown His love for us in this: Jesus Christ died for sinners. But there is more. Jesus also rose for sinners.
And why is Jesus’ resurrection important? In the short time we have left, I’ll try to tell you: If Jesus had died and stayed dead, you would never believe me; you would have ignored Him. You would have dismissed the death of Jesus with the words: ‘The Christ truly was a great man, but He was only a man. He was special, but He is dead.’ And that would have been the end of our discussion. But Jesus lives and because He lives, you can be sure that the Holy Spirit will take sinful hearts, move them to repentance, apply His blood-bought forgiveness, and save them. You, my friends, are what Jesus was willing to die for.
Years ago, I read an article about a young man from Hanover, PA., who was badly burned in a boiler explosion. To save his life, physicians covered him with sheets of skin cultured from a stamp-sized piece of his own, unburned skin. But that was not enough to save him. The doctors covered the man with 6,000 square centimeters of skin taken from a dead donor. Toward the end of his recovery, a journalist asked him, “Do you ever think about the donor who saved you?” The young man replied, “To be alive because of a dead donor is too big, too much (for me), so I don’t think about it.” My friend, you can live because someone has died for you, because of your ever-living Lord. Please, I need you to think about it; you need you to think about it. Think about it and believe on it. Believe this: God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. To that end, if we can help, call us at The Lutheran Hour. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for March 8, 2009
Topic: How Private Is Private Confession?
Mark: How private is private confession? Pastor Ken Klaus answers questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer. The Lutheran Service Book has a brief order of service for “Individual Confession and Absolution.” It begins, “Pastor, please hear my confession and pronounce forgiveness in order to fulfill God’s will.”
Ken: I’m interested to see where this is going.
Mark: Well, today’s topic is the confession of sins.
Ken: I think that’s a topic that will probably lose some of our listeners right off the bat.
Mark: Why?
Ken: It’s this way, Mark. Sin has kind of been set aside nowadays. Many preachers don’t talk much about it all that much anymore.
Mark: I suppose the idea of sin incurring the wrath of Almighty God is kind of a turn-off.
Ken: And besides which, a big percentage of people today no longer believe in sin. If they do believe in God’s wrath over sin, it’s reserved for big sins… not the kind of sins they might commit.
Mark: In other words, they’re just little sinners compared to guys like Charles Manson who are the really big sinners.
Ken: Right. Many would say that a murderer like Manson needs to confess his sins. He’s done some really bad stuff. But they don’t have all that much to repent of. They might be sinners, but they’re still pretty good–and the things they’ve done sort-of-wrong are hardly worth mentioning.
Mark: Any other reasons why people are reluctant to confess their sins?
Ken: I assume we’re not talking about a Sunday morning general confession here?
Mark: Actually, the person who wrote to us was wondering about private confession, where an individual goes to the pastor or priest to confess and receive absolution. Their question is, how private is private confession?
Ken: And along with that is the question why people should confess. Part of that answer is found in the listener’s question.
Mark: You mean…’ how private is it?’
Ken: The thinking goes like this… If I don’t confess any sins to a pastor, I don’t have to worry about it. I don’t have to worry about it getting out. I don’t have to worry about the pastor thinking less of me. I don’t have to worry every time I meet him on the street. Why should I confess? Confessing my sin only makes things worse. I think I’ll just keep a closed mouth. Besides which, why do I need to confess to a person? Isn’t confessing to God good enough?
Mark: All very likely situations-what’s the answer?
Ken: Let’s deal with the last one first. It’s the easiest.
Mark: About whether confessing things to God as being good enough?
Ken: Right. Confessing sins to God IS good enough. The only problem is, it could be these people have done that, but the sense of guilt is still riding them. They may need to say real words to a real representative of Jesus and hear real words of forgiveness for that particular sin. They may need to hear those words to shut that door-to know that the forgiveness Jesus won for them at the cross applies to them, right then and there.
Mark: But won’t the pastor or priest think less of them for confessing their sin?
Ken: Not really. Mark, if a person goes to the movies he sees just about everything there is to see. What is left to shock us?
Mark: But might that not happen?
Ken: It might, but not very often. The other side of the coin is this: pastors and priests have a special respect for a sinner who repents and needs to hear God’s word of forgiveness. We’re glad that someone takes their faith that seriously.
Mark: Is the pastor or priest obligated to keep your confession in confidence?
Ken: That’s an easy question to answer. Yes. He has to keep it confidential.
Mark: He doesn’t tell a teen-ager’s parents?
Ken: Not without permission from the person who has confessed.
Mark: He doesn’t go to the authorities?
Ken: Not without permission. Every clergyman I know would go to prison…most would die… before they break the trust of the confessional.
Mark: Let’s go far out on this. Suppose a murderer came in and made confession, and received forgiveness but then committed another murder. How about then?
Ken: Pastors and priests don’t generally shield lawbreakers, folks who have committed a prosecutable crime. That’s why we will encourage an individual, if possible, to make amends… on occasion we will encourage someone to turn himself in to authorities… especially if an innocent person is being punished.
Mark: How would you sum this all up?
Ken: Without the individual’s permission, we can’t share what we’ve heard with anyone, or anybody, at anytime. Period.
Mark: 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
“Lamb of God” by Kenneth Kosche. From Triumphant Lamb by the Kammerchor (© 1996 Concordia University-Wisconsin) Art Masters Studios, Inc.
“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” by Healey Willan. From Agnus Dei by the Concordia Seminary Chorus (© 1996 Concordia Seminary Chorus) Concordia Publishing House
“Jesus, Death of My Death” by J.S. Bach