18 February 2020
Text: John 6:22-40
In the name of +
Jesus. Amen.
Today
we honor St. Martin Luther – priest, doctor, confessor, theologian, preacher, and
reformer. Luther’s life was centered on
feeding the hungry – not those who hungered for worldly meat and drink, but
those who hungered for the Bread of Life at a time when the Church was not carrying
out its Petrine charge to “feed My lambs.”
Instead of feeding the faithful with the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Church
hierarchy of Luther’s day was fleecing the flock, lying, and engaging in
corruption, sexual immorality, and false doctrine.
And
some jurisdictions within the church are still more focused on money and sex
and power than the Bread of Life.
We
whom history has misnamed as “Lutherans” must heed the preaching of Dr. Luther,
for he preached Christ crucified. He
preached the Gospel. He preached us
right to the communion rail to receive the Blessed Sacrament of our Lord Jesus Christ:
that is, the very Bread of Life!
Our
Lord Jesus often cautioned His hearers about seeking after signs. This remains a problem for all Christians. Many times as a pastor I have heard survivors
claim that pennies on the ground (or other such things) were signs from their
departed loved ones. And we are not wrong
to desire signs, dear friends. St. John
refers to our Lord’s miracles as signs. But
we need to look in the right place for signs. We need to look to Christ alone.
If
you visit New Orleans, you will see an impressive basilica cathedral in the
heart of the city. And just outside the
doors, lined up like an opposing army, you will see tables of fortune tellers
with tarot cards. You will see both tourists
and locals seeking after signs. Many of
these people are Christians. Some claim
it is just for fun. But people indeed
spend a lot of money seeking after signs to tell them what to do. All the while, dear friends, our Lord tells us
what we need to know – in the Scriptures, in the preaching of the Gospel, in Holy
Absolution, and in the Sacrament of the Altar, where we literally eat the bread
of Life, and we drink His blood as He bids us do in His own testament.
The
Lord Jesus Christ gives Himself on the cross as a sign – a sign of the
forgiveness of sins. He gives you Holy Baptism
as a sign – a sign that the promise is for you!
He gives you the Holy Eucharist as a sign – a sign that your body and
your soul are nourished by the Bread of Life, by the Lord’s command and gracious
invitation! And the Lord Jesus tells us what
these signs point to: “Everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him should
have eternal life, and I will raise Him up on the last day.”
Dr.
Luther received what the Lord taught him.
And he preached and taught and confessed and stood for the truth in the face
of malicious and evil people who sought his death. Luther exposed the sham of the cult of the
saints, the perverted clergy, the lies, the shameful appropriation of the blessed
mother of God as a goddess, and worst of all, the superstition that your
salvation is earned by your good works instead of by the grace of feeding on the
Bread of Life that the Lord provides His Church today even as He provided for His
Church of old in the form of manna from heaven.
Grace
is free. It is not for sale. It isn’t found in worthless indulgences or stupid
tarot cards. Luther preached the Word of
God and reminded the Church of the sign of the cross: our Lord’s atoning grace,
and our dependence upon the Word of God, that is, the “true bread from heaven.” For all of this, we confess with St. Martin, “It
is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true.” Amen.
In the name of the Father
and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
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