The Lutheran Hour

"Playing Second Fiddle"

#77-30
Presented on The Lutheran Hour on April 4, 2010
Speaker: Rev. Ken Klaus
Copyright 2025 Lutheran Hour Ministries

Text: Luke 24:11-12

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! This is the Sunday of Resurrection Celebration. Today, the Savior’s church, all those who have been washed of their sins by the crucified and risen Lord Jesus gladly sing, “I know that my Redeemer lives; What comfort this sweet sentence gives! He lives, He lives, who once was dead; He lives, my ever-living Head.” In the Name of our living Lord Jesus, God grant such faith be ours. Amen.

Every Sunday for more than 75 years The Lutheran Hour has been telling a dying world about the forgiveness and salvation which has been won for all of us through the life and death, the crucifixion and resurrection of God’s Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. This day, this day which is specifically dedicated to remembering the Lord’s conquest of the grave, is no different. On the other hand, I do beg your indulgence in the way in which I shall share that message. I beg your indulgence because this message is, for me, an incredibly personal message. It is a message of faith, it is the message of a Christian lady; it is, most important of all, a message from my Savior.

“Honey”, that was what my Mother said to me from her seat on the couch, “Honey, I want you to preach my funeral.” This was my first visit with my Mother after she had, two days before, been told by the doctor that she had advanced, aggressive cancer of the pancreas, of the liver, and assorted other organs.

The doctor shared: the cancer had advanced to where radiation would not work, surgery would not do the job, and chemotherapy might be used to reduce the pain but not change the inevitable outcome.

The word “dying” had never been used, but when my sister and Mother left the doctor’s office, they knew they had been told, “Jeanette (that’s my Mother’s name), Jeanette, your time on earth is very limited. Go home, put your business in order, say your final ‘farewells’ to family and friends.” That’s what the doctor had said. And my Mother? Having just been told she would not celebrate another Christmas, my Mother, before she left the doctor’s office, turned and comforted him by saying, “It’s OK, Doc. I’m a Christian and Jesus is my Savior. Because of Jesus, my earthly end will not be my final end.” It was the first time Mom had ever said such a thing. It would not be the last. Other doctors, on other days, would hear her say the same: “Jesus Christ is my Savior and I am going home to Him.”

Two days later Mom and I sat alone in her living room. I was not surprised when she turned to me and said, “Honey, I’d like you to preach my funeral sermon.” It was not the first time I had been given such a request. Twenty years before, after Dad died, we found in his writings a similar appeal. “Ask Kenny to preach my funeral, if he’s able. P.S. Don’t pay him anything.”

Dad’s funeral I could preach. But this… this was different. To the rest of the world I’m 60-years-old, but to my Mother, I remain her little boy. That night I thought… and I prayed. Finally, I remembered a story Mom had told me… a story she had told me more than forty years ago. Mother had told me of something said by the celebrated conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein. When asked, “What is the hardest instrument in the orchestra to play?” without hesitation Bernstein shot back: “Second fiddle. I can always get first violinists. But to find someone who will play second violin with a first violinist’s enthusiasm, that’s hard.” Having said that, Bernstein reflected, “And yet if no one plays second violin, the world shall have no harmony.”

The next day I once again sat with my Mother. I said, “Mom, I have the outline of your funeral sermon. Would you like to hear it?” She listened without interruption and when I was done, she smiled and said, “That’s fine, Kenny. It describes me. Preach your sermon about me playing second fiddle.” Does it seem strange that I would speak of my Mother as a second-fiddle player? If so, this Resurrection Sunday, and I have not forgotten it is Resurrection Sunday, please, let me explain.

Mom was smart. Real smart. Cross-word-puzzles-in-ink kind of smart.

Remembering-birthdays-and-anniversaries-and-phone-numbers kind of smart. Mom’s smarts ran rings around my Father. But guests at our home never knew that. What they saw was a woman gladly playing second fiddle to a man she loved, whom she regarded as the spiritual head of our home. Does that point of view seem archaic and politically incorrect? Maybe to you, but Mom saw no shame in it… nor did Dad. He loved her for her trust, her love, her honor, and all in that home heard a beautiful harmony as he moved heaven and earth to be worthy of her.

Mom played second fiddle but not just for Dad. She played second fiddle for her three children, too. If you look through the family pictures from those days, you will see, in many of them, Mom is wearing the same dress. She is wearing the same dress when my brother, Tom was in first grade, and second grade, and third grade. Tom’s clothes change; my sister’s clothes change; so do mine, but Mom’s didn’t. Did we need music lessons, we had them. Did we need money for a field trip, we had it. She went without so we didn’t have to. None of us appreciated her sacrifices back then, but today we know how blessed we were to have had a Christian mother who served the Savior and, following His example, sacrificed herself for her children and played second fiddle.

Yes, Jeanette lived her life playing second fiddle. Mom spent unappreciated and unapplauded years shopping, and cooking, and cleaning, and washing clothes for her Mother-in-law, a lady with a frail constitution. Mom played second fiddle as she spent almost every Saturday baking delicious goodies for church Bible classes. She counted the teachers and made sure each had a loaf of home-made specialty breads. In the name of Jesus, Mom played second fiddle to us all. And I do mean all of us, even you who have never met her or heard of her before today. You see, every month, like tens of thousands of others, my Mom sent in a check to The Lutheran Hour. Now, before I go any farther I want you to know… I’m not asking you for a penny; I’m not asking you for anything. On the contrary, this broadcast is here to give you something wonderful, something unbelievable, something unique and saving. You see, this broadcast comes to you because a lot of people who know Jesus, people like my Mom, set aside some money so I can tell you of Jesus’ love. These people, many of them poor people, take some of what they have and ask me to tell you about their Savior, their Jesus, their crucified and risen Lord.

You know, if I were to stop this message right now… I believe my Mother, living or dead, would rise up and chew me out. She would say, “Kenny, (that’s what she would call me) Kenny, I know you’ve been talking about me because all of those folks who are listening, everybody in this world, like me, are going to die. Kenny, tell them death is going to come… and then you be sure to tell them about Jesus. When the doctor told me he couldn’t do anything to help; when not even the love of you children could cure me; the love of Jesus helped me. And Jesus is the only One who can really help them when the doctor says, “Your time is up.” Kenny, tell them the broadcast is about the Savior. That’s what I paid for… so you could tell them about the Savior. Don’t you forget to tell them about Him. And I’d have to say to her… and to the tens of thousands who know the Savior, ‘I haven’t forgotten. I’ll tell them about Jesus, the Son of God who played second fiddle so we might be saved.”‘

You know, my friends, today there are a lot of people out there who are taking shots at Jesus. There are comedians who laugh at Him… and a lot of men can’t say a sentence without taking His name in vain. Jesus came to bring us peace, but there are religions out there who hate Him so much that they have declared war on Him and anybody who says,
‘Jesus is my Savior.’ There are authors who say, “Jesus never died and He most certainly never rose.” There are scholars who would have you believe the church has
been telling you lies and covering up the real truth. I don’t have time to list all of the critics and all of the arguments they come up with to talk you out of following Jesus and
I’m not smart enough to argue against them all.

No, I won’t argue with them. Alii want you to do is look inside yourself. Please. Take a look, If you do, you’ll conclude you’re a sinner. If you do, you’ll see things you’ve done which are bad, and wrong, and petty, and small. You have been greedy, and lustful, and envious, and hurtful. You have hated, haven’t you? I know, We all have, That’s because all of us are sinners and God isn’t pleased with us, How do I know there is a God? There are a lot of reasons, I’ll give you the easiest Are you wearing a watch? That watch didn’t just happen, A watch means there is a watchmaker. Well, you, my friend, are a million times more complicated than your watch, I know Somebody has made you and that Somebody is God, God is your watchmaker, and the things you have done wrong, the sins you have committed have gunked up the mechanism, Those sins have made you pretty worthless, And that’s the way you will remain, A watch can’t fix itself, and you can’t either, Go ahead, try, The world has been trying for thousands of years but we still have wars, and hatred, and prejudice, and murder, and rape, and theft, and”” Well, you’ve read the newspapers, haven’t you”, even more, you’ve looked into your own heart and you know the big and little sins that are there”, some of them are so bad you would be embarrassed if anybody found out, wouldn’t you?

Well, God, your watchmaker, wanted to fix you; He wanted to get rid of your sins; get rid of the gunk, To do that, He sent His Son, Jesus, Jesus Christ is the Son of God, but He was also born of a human, a virgin by the name of Mary, Jesus was born into this world so He could take your place, Remember, I said, Jesus came to play second fiddle? In the Bible, in the Gospels, you can read of His life, You can see Him playing second fiddle as He did all the things for us that we couldn’t do for ourselves, When evil came up and tempted Him, Jesus said, “No,”; and He said it every time, When it would have been easier, safer, more expedient for Jesus to take a shortcut and sin, Jesus stayed on the path God wanted Him to walk, Understand, He did all of this for you, Every bit of it His whole life was spent taking your place and playing second fiddle,

You may have been loved in this world, but nobody has loved you that way”,not even your mother. Jesus loved you all the time, Year after year and decade after decade Jesus loved you and all of lost humanity, And how did the world show its thanks and its appreciation for what Jesus was doing? Look in the Bible, It tells you, People hated Him so much they arrested Him, They put Him on trial, but the trial was a joke, It was illegal and they brought in bribed witnesses and they kept changing the charges against Him, Because Jesus had given His life to saving you”, to getting rid of the gunk inside you”, they beat Him; they whipped Him; they put a crown of thorns upon His head; they crucified and they killed Him, And If you hear somebody say Jesus didn’t die”, don’t you believe them, The Roman soldiers who crucified Jesus would have forfeited their lives if Jesus had been taken down off that cross alive, Besides which the Bible says those guards, to make sure Jesus was dead, stuck a spear into His heart, You can’t get any deader than that

The day Jesus died was a dark day”, a black day”, the worst day in human history, On the day Jesus was placed into a borrowed grave it seemed that all of us really were lost and the devil, and the world, and sin, and death”, foul death had won, If things had stayed that way, when the doctor told my Mother, “I’m sorry, we can’t do anything”; the time left to her would have been hopeless and we who love her would have been left with only the mementos she had given us, the mementos and ever-fading memories, If things had stayed that way, parents who have seen their children die, spouses who have watched helplessly as a beloved life’s partner succumbed to some manifestation of death’s cold hand would spend the rest of their days trying to numb their pain and forget or invent new ways to remember that which is slipping away,

If things had stayed the same, But things didn’t stay the same, Three days after Jesus’ lifeless body had been placed into that tomb; three days after this sorry, sinful world had abandoned hope, the hand of God shook the world and changed our eternal future, On that third day, the day we remember this day, Jesus Christ, a living, breathing, physical, tangible, touchable Jesus Christ came out of that tomb, It happened, and because it happened, things changed, Jesus had lived our life; He had died our death, and now, He showed us that death had lost its sting, the grave no longer has the final victory,

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Those words change things forever; and they change it for all who believe, Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! The doctor may not have been able to help Jeanette Klaus, the wisdom of this world’s most brilliant minds may not be able to save us, but Scripture is clear, ‘the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.’ Christ is risen!
He is risen, indeed! Because my Redeemer liveth, I know the many pains produced by this pitiful world shall be brought to an end. Because Christ is risen, the stranglehold of the grave is broken. Because Christ is risen, no longer are our good byes final farewells. Because

Christ has risen, the most debilitating of illnesses will someday be destroyed; the pains will cease; the tears will be dried, and those who have faith in Jesus will hear the laughter and the songs and see the smiles of souls … of souls who have been saved by Jesus.

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! That is the message my Mother would have me share with you. It is the message countless Christians living and dead would have me preach. It is the message my crucified and victorious Savior has commanded me to bring to you. Why? Because the day is coming for you, the day is coming for your loved ones when death will arrive. The day is coming when Satan will whisper to your hurting hearts: “There is no hope; there is no comfort; there is no reunion, there is nothing more than a casket and a cold grave.” There is a day coming when darkness and depression, lostness and loneliness will try to confuse your faith and confound your trust and cloud your future. When that day comes, and it will come, may you, by God’s grace, be granted the faith to say, ‘Silence Satan! Because of the crucified and risen Jesus Christ, you have no power here. You have no authority in my heart because of Jesus Christ who lives.’

If such is your faith, and I pray it is … when the time comes for your funeral to be preached, the message will be one of joy… and the people who are gathered will sing with gladness, “Jesus lives to silence all my fears, He lives to wipe away my tears He lives to calm my troubled heart, He lives all blessings to impart. He lives and grants me daily breath; He lives, and I shall conquer death: He lives my mansion to prepare; He lives to bring me safely there. He lives, all glory to His name! He lives, my Jesus, still the same. Oh, the sweet joy this sentence gives, ‘I know that my Redeemer lives!'” Amen.

LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers)
April 4, 2010
Topic: Celebrating Easter

Announcer: Why is Easter celebrated on a different day each year? Pastor Ken Klaus responds to questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer and this is actually kind of a fun question for us today.

Klaus: A fun question having to do with the celebration of our Lord’s resurrection.

Announcer: A listener writes: “Why is Easter celebrated on a different date each year? My pastor says it could be as early as March 22nd or as late as April 25th.

Klaus: That’s a very smart pastor. Some years the resurrection is celebrated early and some years it’s late. What does the listener say next?

Announcer: Well, he says, “When I asked my pastor why Easter floats around so much, he told me it’s because of how it’s calculated.”

Klaus: Yes. Celebration of Easter always falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox.

Announcer: OK, so the celebration of Easter is pegged to the Sunday after the first full moon at a time of the year when the length of day and night is equal all around the world.

Klaus: Yup, that’s the formula. Easter is always celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox.

Announcer: OK, that’s how it’s figured-but our listener wants to know why Easter is all over the calendar if it commemorates an actual historical event. For example, George Washington has a birthday and that doesn’t change from year to year. Or how about December 7, Pear Harbor Day? That doesn’t change from year to year. Wedding anniversaries don’t change.

Klaus: That’s good. Some guys have a touch enough time remembering their
anniversaries, as it is. Don’t want it switching around.

Announcer: So, then, why does Easter change every year? Couldn’t it be just one certain day, like, you know, December 25th, that’s Christmas?”

Klaus: Good question. Announcer: How about a good answer?

Klaus: I have an answer, the listeners will have to determine whether it’s good or not.

Announcer: OK.

Klaus: Here’s the thing … when Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after His crucifixion, it was a big deal. Believers realized that because Jesus rose, our eternity is changed. We are forgiven; we have been re-assigned from hell to heaven. We ought to remember it and give thanks in a special way.

Announcer: No problem so far.

Klaus: Some folks said then, “Jesus rose on Sunday, so let’s worship Him on Sunday.”

Announcer: Which most Christians do. We worship on Sunday to remember the resurrection.

Klaus: Others said, “Let’s try to figure out the exact day Jesus rose and we will celebrate that whenever it falls.”

Announcer: But if they did that, Easter could fall on a Monday, or a Tuesday.

Klaus: Like Christmas, it would fallon Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday …

Announcer: Any day of the week.

Klaus: Other folks said, Jesus is the ultimate Passover Sacrifice for us. We ought to
connect it to the celebration of the Passover. They wanted to go with the Jewish 14th day of Nisan.

Announcer: Nisan? What’s that?

Klaus: It’s a month in the Jewish calendar. In the early Church there were a great many believers who came from a Jewish background, so that argument did pretty good, too.

Announcer: OK. What else?

Klaus: In one sense, every Sunday is a reminder that Jesus rose. Go to worship every Sunday to help you give thanks that Jesus kept His promises and defeated sin, the devil and our last enemy: death.

Announcer: So then every Sunday, that’s the answer?

Klaus: Yeah, well, it’s part of the answer. Personally, I want to remember that the
resurrection of Jesus was an actual, physical event in history. For that reason I think we need to set aside a Sunday, a special Sunday to remember Christ is risen.

Announcer: But what Sunday would that be? Klaus: Personally, I’d favor a set day … a day like December 25th … but in order to do that rightly you would have to know the day Jesus died … and I’m not enough of an historian to know exactly when that day would be.

Announcer: So, every Sunday and then one, special Sunday out of the year, that’s the
answer? Klaus: Again, it’s part of the answer. You see, Jesus’ rising from the dead changes my entire life. When I believe in the crucified and risen Savior, every day is changed. He forgives my sins, every day. He strengthens my faith every day.

Announcer: So, I guess the complete answer is, we can celebrate Easter every Sunday … and on one special day … and every day.

Klaus: Well, that pretty well sums it up, Every day is a day to celebrate: Christ is risen!

Announcer: He is risen, indeed, Thank you Pastor Klaus, This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries,

Music selection for this program:

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

“I Know That My Redeemer Lives” arr, John A. Behnke, From Hymns for All Saints: Lent, Easter, Pentecost (© 2006 Concordia Publishing House)

“He’s Risen, He’s Risen” arr, Jeffrey Blersch, From Resounding Alleluias by Jeffrey Blersch (© 2005 Jeffrey Blersch)

“I Know That My Redeemer Lives” arr, Michael Burkhardt. From Hymn Improvisations, vol. 1 by Michael Burkhardt (© 1993 MorningStar Music Publishers)