Rev. Franke's Theme Thoughts

 C Proper 07 Pentecost 05 –  June 23, 2013

Lessons for Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

Isaiah 65:1–9 ~ Although the people of Judah forsook the Lord, God promised to restore some to Jerusalem.

Psalm 3 (Antiphon: Psalm 3:6)

Galatians 3:23—4:7 ~ Now that we have been set free from the curse of the law, we share our faith in Christ.

Luke 8:26–39 ~ After Jesus freed a man from many demons, he told everyone what Jesus had done.             

GATHERING THE TEXTS: God Brings Good out of Bad Things.

Even though Israel would not call out to God and defied Him by their idolatry, God rescued them from their own deception and made them heirs of the promise.  That promise made to Abraham was fulfilled in Jesus even though it took the cruel curse of the law to turn us to God’s grace.  Jesus manifested God’s saving grace to the man who was possessed by Legion, rescuing him from the demons’ power and redeeming his life for the proclamation of God’s grace.

PRAYER BEFORE THE SERVICE:  Lord my God, even when I don’t look for You, You keep Your eye on me; even when I don’t cry out to You, You hear the fears of my heart.  For Jesus’ sake, redeem me, restore me, and renew me that I may serve You by proclaiming how much You have done for me.  Amen.

STEWARDSHIP THOUGHT: God rescues sinners from the clutches of the law as one might pull a cluster of grapes from the compost.  Instead of fine wine, God produces heirs of eternal life.  Even a herd of pigs is worth less in God’s sight than a child of His in the clutches of Satan!  How much is it worth to you to rescue those who do not yet know of God’s grace in Christ?

OFFERING PRAYER:      Oh Lord, You know that we would work great wonders if we could,

                                                But You alone can take these gifts and make them something good.

                                                Turn dying slaves to kingdom heirs through faith in Christ Your Son,

                                                And use our lives in loving deeds to tell what You have done.  Amen.

CONVICTION AND COMFORT: Under the law, we are enslaved to our sin.  Even when we break ourselves free from the shackles of morality, we still find ourselves living among the tombs in a spiritual death.  What we envision as success turns out to be failure.  But God turns loss into gain. He rescues a cluster of grapes from the compost and produces fine wine from its juice.  In Christ we are no longer slaves, but heirs of God’s grace, children of Kingdom-life, set free from our demons to declare to all the world what God has done for us

The Christian Father

Ephesians 5:33-6:4  I read an article this week in the New York Times entitled:  “Sexism’s Puzzling Stamina” in which the author, Frank Bruni talked about what he sees as the enduring problem of sexism in our culture.  As examples, he mentioned sexual harassment in the military and the lack of professional women’s soccer in the U.S. and how they are:

“reminders of how often women are still victimized, how potently they’re still resented and how tenaciously a musty male chauvinism endures…I somehow thought we’d be further along by now.”

Mr. Bruni is still puzzled at the end of the article as to the reason why what he identifies as sexism has such stamina.  His readers however are not puzzled.  This one comment will give you the gist of what they see as the problem: 

Too many of the wrong headed ideas about both men and women in today's world are reflected in the so-called holy books of the patriarchal religions of the world…As long as the male "leaders" hold to the literal word of their misogynistic gods as absolute truth, women will fight this battle. Beware those who would make this country Christian…Why people persist in following a book written 2,000 years ago about a band of wandering barbarians is beyond me.

            Let me be very clear:  I am one of those male leaders who interprets the Bible literally, believes it to be absolute truth, and calls God “Father” and far from seeing patriarchy as the problem in our culture-- I see it as the solution to what ails us.

So what is patriarchy?  Very simply it means the rule of fathers and the Bible teaches it from beginning to end as the proper order for home, family, marriage, and church.  Let me give you some examples…

God told Adam that he would rule over his wife Eve and to all people he said that the husband is the head of the wife and women are to respect their husbands.  Jesus chose twelve men to be his apostles to rule the church and they chose seven men to assist them as deacons and the church has chosen men to be pastors ever since Timothy and Titus.  The apostle Paul said that women are not to exercise authority over men in the church and that there was no other practice than this among the churches of God.  The Bible says that fathers are to discipline and instruct their children and children are to obey their fathers.

This is what the Bible teaches regarding the proper way to order marriage, the family, and the church and many people, like those commenting in the New York Times, reject what the Bible says because they reject the God who is the Author of these words.  The church has little to say to these folks except repent and believe the Gospel.

But there are still many, many other folks—perhaps some sitting here today—for whom the biblical teaching of patriarchy makes them more than a little bit uneasy—and the reason for that is not so much the idea of Patriarchy—but the application of it—what kind of men are going to be ruling?  All of us know examples of men who have misused this teaching and abused those who God wanted them care for and these men and their actions are beneath contempt.

The solution to our unease about patriarchy is not to abandon the clear teaching of God’s Word (that has not benefited the culture or the church) but to call men to be who they ought to be as Christians—providing for and caring for their families and churches as our heavenly Father cares for us his children—and loving our wives as Christ loves the church.  That is biblical patriarchy.

What we are going to see today as we study God’s Word is that Christian fathers are involved in the church, they love their wives sacrificially like Christ loves the church, they understand their own place in God’s order as those who are also under authority, and they are actively involved in raising their children to know and love God. 

There is nothing to fear from the rule of this kind of man and every blessing to be gained for our congregation, marriages, families, and nation when we reclaim this biblical teaching of godly, Christian patriarchy.  The Bible says:  Let each one of you love his wife and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

This lesson comes from the book of the Bible called Ephesians and it was originally a letter sent to the Christian congregation at Ephesus.  These apostolic letters that became part of sacred Scriptures were sent out one at a time and meant to be read to the whole congregation. 

In other words, the apostles’ expectation was that when these letters were read—there would be men present in worship services on the Lord’s Day to listen to what they had written and learn what kind of men God wanted them to be.  The notion that church is something only for women would have been completely lost on the apostles. 

Jesus chose men to be apostles.  The apostles chose men to be deacons.  And the church chose men to be pastors.  The modern phenomenon of a church full of only women being led by a woman who has usurped the pastoral office is completely alien to the early church and indeed the church as a whole for the first 1950 years of its 2000 year existence.  In fact…

From the beginning God gave men the responsibility for spiritual leadership.  Adam abdicated that leadership and was not present when Eve was under satanic attack and listened to her rather than taught her and the world was ruined.  God counts it all as Adam’s sin.

The exact same thing happens today in the church when men sit back rather than step up.  It’s not enough that our church still understands that men are called to be pastors.  Every man in this congregation needs to understand that God wants him to serve this place as God has gifted him.  That means that men will be present for voters’ meetings and serve on committees and teach Sunday School and attend bible class and give generously to the church.

That authority to serve and lead the church flows from the responsibility that the Christian man has to serve and lead his wife in a Christ-like way.  Leadership in the church begins with leadership in the home.  The Bible says: 

Let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. 

Just a few verses earlier Paul says that the husband is not just to love his wife as he loves himself—but he is to love her as Christ loves the church who sacrificed himself for her welfare, and cares for the church which is his body.  The Christian man’s leadership in marriage, and his headship over his wife, flows from love—love that recognizes that he and his wife are one flesh—love that is exemplified in Christ’s love for us at the cross.

The Christian man is called to Christ-like leadership that begins in a heart that is filled with Christ’s love and a desire to serve those around him.  He puts his wife first; he desires what is best for her here on earth and forever in heaven; and is willing to lay down his life for her just as Christ laid down his life for us on the cross. 

Yes, God calls upon wives to respect their husbands and submit to them—but this respect of the wife for her husband begins with the husband’s Christ-like love for his wife-- for he recognizes his own place in God’s order, as one under authority.  The Bible says:

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.”    

            There is a biblical order for the family:  the husband is the head of the wife and children are to obey their parents.  But this biblical order for the family fits into a larger order that begins within the Holy Trinity:  God is the Father who begets the Son and the Holy Spirit proceeds from each.  Even though they share a common divinity—there is still an order within the Godhead.

            And the order that begins within the Holy Trinity-extends into the world.  Mankind is given dominion over creation.  The government serves as God’s minister.  And masters rule over their servants.  All of this is part of the fourth commandment and applies to men too for there is a whole host of people to whom we owe honor and service and love and obedience.

The rule of fathers does not make men a law unto themselves.  Far from it!  Before men are fit to lead others they must first understand that in their providing and protecting and teaching and ruling they are taking their position under God and are responsible to him for the exercise of their authority—especially when it involves their children—who belong to God, first. 

That is why the Bible says that fathers are not to provoke their children.  In other words, their rule over their children must be done in a way that recognizes that their children are God’s children first and their rule over them must be like his—gentle and firm and kind and wise.  God intends that children learn about their heavenly Father by the way they are treated by their earthly father.  And in this way fathers can begin to teach them the things of God. 

The Bible says that fathers are to bring their children up “in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” and so it is the father’s responsibility to see that his home is a Christian home; that his children are brought to Holy Baptism; that they are taught the stories of the Bible and how to say their prayers; that worship on the Lord’s Day is expected.  Studies show that it is the father’s example of faith that has the strongest influence on his children’s life of faith.

The Bible teaches patriarchy—the rule of fathers—but that teaching has nothing to do with the way the world understands what it means to rule.  Instead, the Christian father finds his example in that of his heavenly Father who lovingly provides for and protects his family and the example of Jesus Christ who lays down his life to serve those he loves.  When Christian fathers are active in their church and love their wives and raise their children as Christians they are a blessing to those they lead in the home, family, congregation, and nation.  May God grant us an increase of this kind of man who understands his calling as a husband and father!  Amen.

Father's Day General Prayer

Gracious heavenly Father, Your steadfast love to those who fear You is from everlasting to everlasting and higher than the heavens above.  As we come to You in prayer, show us Your compassion and answer us for our good:

How grateful we are that You do not deal with us according to our sins or repay us in our iniquities but have forgiven us by the death of Your Son Jesus Christ on the cross.  As You clothed Adam and Eve with skins that covered their shame so cover us with the blood of Your Son Jesus Christ.  Empower our witness to this good news as we share it with others.

We confess and believe that You are our Creator—that You know our frame—that we are dust.  Help us in our many weaknesses of body and soul.  According to Your wise fatherly will grant healing to those who are ill and facing medical procedures this week.  Remind them that they are in Your mighty, merciful hands.  Comfort those who mourn with the hope we have in the resurrection of Your Son Jesus Christ—that because he lives we will also live.  Deliver those who suffer from addictions and besetting sins and let them not be overcome and lose faith.  Grant relief to those who suffer from any material need and move us to compassion and generosity to help them.

We thank You for Your gifts of marriage and family.  Grant that we would be a blessing to those closest to us as we serve in our various vocations:  husbands loving their wives, wives respecting their husbands, and children obeying their parents.  Especially do we ask Your blessing on David and Joy as they celebrate a wedding anniversary.  Grant that their love for one another and You would deepen and grow over the years they share together.

On this day when our nation observes Father’s Day, we ask You to bless and uphold and encourage all fathers as they discipline and instruct their children in Your ways.  Remind them that they are called to love their family as You love the church and to serve sacrificially as Christ gave himself for the church.  Preserve us from the temptation to adopt the ways and thinking of the world and instead follow the holy example of marriage and family and congregational life that You have given in Your Word.  Help each man to find honest, honorable work so that he can supply good things to those he cares for.

Lord, we know that our days are like grass and that while we flourish for a while like the flower of the field there will come a day when our life on this earth will fade from view.  Let Your steadfast love which is from everlasting to everlasting rest upon us all our days on earth and then forever in eternity.

Whatever else You see that we need; whatever is good for our neighbor and gives glory to You; whatever will work for our final salvation grant to us to dear Father in heaven for we ask it in the glad confidence of those who come to You in the name of Your Son Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Jesus Makes Death Give Way To Life

Luke 7:11-17 I am certain that there is not one person sitting here today who likes the idea that one of these days we are all going to die.  The fact of the matter is we find it appalling—and well we should!  The Bible says that death is an enemy.   

God created man and gave us life.  He made man in his image and intended that, like him, we would live forever.  And so our whole being rebels against the idea that we will die because we were made for life.

But sin came into the world through man’s disobedience and along with sin came death and so now all men die.  All!  Death is no respecter of persons.  No matter our skin color.  No matter our socio-economic status.  No matter our gender.  No matter our age.  We will die and so will those we love.

It is here especially—in the death of our loved ones—that the horror of death has its full, terrifying effect on our hearts.  How fervently we pray for God to protect our children!  How devoutly we pray for our loved ones serving in the military.  How earnestly we pray for family members who are ill--that they all would be spared!

That we feel this way about our own mortality- and that we feel this way about our loved ones dying--is not a sign of a lack of faith.  The fact of the matter is:  God feels the same way about death!   Death is such a terrible enemy that his Son Jesus Christ came into this world to do something about it.

Jesus also experienced the terror of death:  the death of loved ones like Lazarus—and his own death on the cross.  But what we see throughout the Gospels is that in the presence of Jesus, death has to give way to life.  The Bible says that: 

Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him.  As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. 

            Most of us go for many years experiencing nothing but God’s blessings but then some tragedy strikes and we are reminded that life is a journey through the valley of the shadow of death.  We just see it more clearly when we face a tragedy like the widow of Nain.  That poor woman—long before the death of her son—already knew about heartache:  she lost her husband. 

In these events we are reminded that there will come a day of parting for us and our beloved—when that one who is as close to us as our own flesh is parted from us by death—and we know how painful that will be. 

That is what that poor widow had already gone through—but even then, with that painful loss, she was not finished walking through the valley of the shadow of death.  Her only son died.

To lose a child is the worst pain a human being can endure.  All of us who are parents can imagine what she was going through-- but what not may be immediately apparent to us is what this death meant for her own life as a childless widow.  As heart-broken as she was over the death of her son, somewhere in the back of her mind she was already wondering to herself:  how in the world am I going to live?

That was the burden that weighed upon her as she walked behind her son’s body in that procession of death—until she met the Lord of Life who took that burden upon himself.  The Bible says that:  “…when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her

            This is the first place in his Gospel that St. Luke, as the narrator of these events, addresses Jesus as Lord—the mighty covenant God who has the power and the authority to change even death. 

And not only did Jesus have the power to do so, he was moved with compassion to do so—his heart went out to this poor, sad widow in an obscure town. 

Jesus’ attitude of love and concern for those without much earthly power must have really made an impression on St. Luke, because he tells us again and again in his Gospel that Jesus reaches out to help those who the rest of society regards as having little value-- and we see that same thing here. 

From the world’s perspective, one, poor widow in an obscure town doesn’t matter much—but the Lord counted her worthy of his help.  So too for us.  There is no hardship or difficulty that you are facing right now that is unknown to the Lord or beyond his help.  He cares for you and wants to ease your burdens just like he did that day.

Compassion and power were perfectly joined together in Jesus and that’s what makes such a life-changing difference in the lives of those the Lord touches.  He told the widow “Do not weep.” 

If we didn’t know how all this would turn out—if we were simply part of the crowd that day-- we could appreciate Jesus’ word as simply a kind gesture—but one that was ultimately empty-- because it couldn’t change anything. 

But when the Lord “Do not weep” he means it!   Do not weep-- for there is no reason for tears in the presence of the Giver of life!  The Bible says:

Jesus came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And Jesus said, "Young man, I say to you, arise."  And the dead man sat up and began to speak. 

Life- from- death!  Just- like- that!  And what is even more stunning than the dead man being raised-- is how it was accomplished—simply by a word—spoken by the One who brought all things into being by his Word.

What we see here is that the Lord is not some impersonal force far removed from our lives.  Instead, he is the living Word of God who took upon himself our flesh and was moved by compassion at what we have done to ourselves by our sins to reach out and help.  That day at Nain, in the presence of Jesus—at his word—death gave way to life. 

The funeral scene that we have before us today gets our attention and resonates with us because it is so familiar.  1. We’ve been part of that group of mourners—grieving over a loved one 2. We can identify with that poor mother—wondering what the future holds for us 3. We know that we too will one day be carried to our grave. 

There was absolutely nothing that anyone there that day could have done to change what happened—there were no tears of grief that the mother could have shed which would have brought life back to her dead son.  There was no show of support from the friends powerful enough to change tragedy into triumph.  There was certainly nothing the dead man could do to help himself. 

But Jesus could—and did—and at Jesus’ Word the man was restored to life.

Through this miracle, Jesus wants us to believe that there is now something greater than sorrow and death in this world.  He wants us to recognize that he has entered into our sorrow and death and his life changes everything for us—even death. 

When Jesus touched the stretcher of the dead man that day he should have become ceremonially unclean.  But just the opposite happened—Jesus’ wholeness and cleanness and life came to rest upon the man.  And the Good News for us today is that what he did for that one man—he has done for you and for me. 

Jesus took all of the uncleanness and sin and death that is a part of our lives and carried it to the cross where it was washed away in his shed blood.  Three days later he rose up from the dead, promising us that we too will rise from death.  And that promise that he speaks to us again and again in Word and Sacrament continues to bring life in the midst of death.

Each of us, by nature, is like that dead young man on the stretcher—we are helpless to change anything about our spiritual condition on our own—but when the words of Jesus are spoken to us in Baptism and Preaching and Absolution and Holy Communion--death is transformed into real, abundant life that only God can give--just like he gave that day.  The Bible says that:  Jesus gave him to his mother. 

Too often, we hesitate to give ourselves wholeheartedly to the Lord because we don’t know what the Lord will ask of us and we’re afraid to follow him.  But Jesus tells us that it is the devil who comes to kill and steal and destroy --while Jesus has come to give life—rich abundant life—a full measure pressed down and overflowing. 

That’s what we see here.  The community was given their friend.  The widow was given her son. And the young man was given his life.   And none of their lives would ever be the same.  The Bible says that:

Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has arisen among us!" and "God has visited his people!"  And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

            The Good News for us today is that God has visited his people in his Son Jesus Christ and in his compassion and power has given us a new life that is just as real and just as life-changing as what occurred that day that day for the widow and her son. 

The dark shadow of sin and death has been driven from our life by the cross and empty tomb.  And Jesus invites us to take our place along side of him, glorifying God by speaking to others his words of hope and faith that give life.  Amen.