Allen Lunneberg

 

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“Lord Over Death” by “the late” Rev. Allen D. Lunneberg

Text: Matthew 16:21-26
Date: Pentecost XVI + 8/31/08

In Saint Matthew’s Gospel we have seen Jesus bringing His disciples along the way to faith in Him by means of His teaching and His miracles. With every step forward He was revealing to them (and to us), little by little, the depth and the fullness of who He is and what He came to accomplish. On the basis of His words and works, thus far, when asked straight out, “who do you say that I am?” Peter confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt. 16:16). It was a mighty confession of faith (and still is)—revealed to Peter (and to us) not by flesh and blood, that is, not by our puny mind’s logic or examination of the facts, but by the heavenly Father Himself, His Spirit working mightily through His Word. To call Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, is to acknowledge Him as God the Redeemer who has taken on our flesh and blood, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. To call Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, is to acknowledge that He came to usher in salvation in the Kingdom of God. To call Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, is to begin to understand the love of God for His world and everyone in it. But there’s more—because the salvation he came to bring us is for more than saving us from mere hunger as at the feeding of the 5,000, or from inclement weather as when He stilled the storm on the lake, or from sickness and suffering as with the daughter of the Canaanite woman, all of which is but the common lot of all in this sinful world. For, the love of God goes to the deepest recesses of our need. And that’s precisely the destination and destiny of the Christ, the Son of God.

At this point in the story, time is beginning to run short. The disciples were as ready as they were going to be, and so, “from that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” “Great Confessor Peter,” however, demonstrated their shallow understanding and partial-faith by his reply, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” Going to Jerusalem? Fine! Suffering many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes? We can understand that. In fact, we’ve already seen that! But they’re going to kill him? “Never, Lord!” And Peter meant that rebuke from a heart-felt loyalty and love and faith. So shocking were the words “and be killed,” it is as though they never really heard the last words, “and on the third day be raised.”

But don’t we have the same problem, in a reverse sort of way? To the extent that the first disciples were shocked at His prediction of being killed in Jerusalem, to that same extent we take it all-too-lightly, as simply a matter of historical fact that shocks us not at all! To take anything “for granted” can be just another form of denial. Like Peter, we would rather not hear or speak of death at all, much less Jesus’ death on the cross. Death is a subject, maybe THE subject to be avoided at all costs as being too negative, too depressing, too distressing. And there’s a kernel of truth in that! For death is negative, depressing, wrong, evil, or as the Scriptures call it, “the last enemy to be destroyed” (1 Cor. 15:26). Yet, the Christ and Son of God came not merely to rearrange our present circumstances to make them more tolerable, to give short-lived success to this otherwise transitory life, to provide a religious cosmetic that only makes us look good and doesn’t get to the real problem. All suffering and sickness, anger and separation, all loneliness and isolation, all fear and terror stems from but one thing: death, the limits determined by God that we cannot pass (Job 14:5).

Now, whether out of misguided loyalty like Peter’s, or out of a faith distracted by earthly fears and worries, God is patient with us. “For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103:14). The question is, do we remember that? It is because of the primeval judgment, “remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Gen. 3:19), and our complete inability to save ourselves from death, that God promised and sent His Son, the Messiah, the Christ, ultimately to meet the Enemy head on—sent Him to His own people who would not receive Him, so that, precisely by their rejection, betrayal and murder of the Son of God, He would become “the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Hebrews 5:9). It was precisely into the confusion and drama and contradictions that characterize life as we know it that He came and took it all on Himself, paying the price for us, taking on Himself all the curse and judgment of God for the sin of the world, in order that we might awaken to life, real life, restored, redeemed, forgiven, eternalized Life.

They heard the words “go to Jerusalem,” “suffer many things,” “and be killed.” But there was also this: “and on the third day be raised.” The “things of man,” the feeble considerations of our finite minds, are all about death, finally. The “things of God,” however, are life eternalized, restored, redeemed, raised up from the dust. And it all centers on Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the living God. “For from him and through him and to him are all things” (Romans 11:36a).

It is interesting that Jesus uses the same word for both Peter, when he called him Satan, and for all who would be his disciples when He said, “Get behind me, Satan!” and, “If anyone would come behind me….” Either way, you see, Christ is in front, in the lead. When He passes by, everything is behind Him…either in the dust of judgment to those who reject Him, or on the dusty trails of faith for those who deny self, take up their cross and follow behind Him to eternal life. The price was paid, once for all, by Jesus on a cross on the outskirts of Jerusalem. Faith is centered in that cross. But it doesn’t end there. For faith is also a journey, a following, an action-packed adventure and struggle marked all along the way by denial of self, keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus. The daily call to take up your cross is to discover the mystery, as St. Paul says it, of rejoicing “in our sufferings” which produce endurance, character, and hope, the hope that does not put us to shame (Romans 5:3-5) because of the victory of the One we are following: Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, the Lord Over Death.

Only when and if you get the “Who is Jesus” question right can you then get the words of the Apostle Paul in today’s Epistle right. For you cannot “let love be genuine” until you have known the genuine love of Jesus. You cannot “rejoice in hope” until you have known the hope and joy of Christ’s resurrection. You cannot “be patient in tribulation” or “constant in prayer” until you have known the Lord’s patience and prayer in His suffering and death. “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philip. 2:5). And who is this Christ Jesus? He is the Son of God who suffered many things and was killed and on the third day was raised from the dead and thus “declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness” (Rom. 1:4).

 

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Text: Matthew 16:13-20
Date: Pentecost XV (Proper 16) + 8/24/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

Peace be to you and grace from Him who freed us from our sins. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

In relating the words and acts of Jesus the Savior, St. Matthew organizes his Gospel with the purpose of telling people about Jesus in a way that they will be convinced, come to the conclusion and believe what St. Peter says in today’s Gospel, namely, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and in such faith and the confession thereof, be saved from death and hell by the forgiveness of sins and inherit eternal life. Matthew carefully arranges things in the beginning of his Gospel to demonstrate that Jesus is the promised Messiah because He perfectly fulfills everything written about Him in the Old Testament. He relates the words and teaching of Jesus to demonstrate how the Old Testament scriptures find their perfect, saving message fulfilled in Jesus. In addition he provides evidence of Jesus’ identity as the Son of God in the various miraculous works that witness to His divine nature—Jesus does what only God can do. Finally, then, this all leads to the most important part of the Gospel, namely, our Lord’s vicarious, sacrificial suffering and death on the cross and His glorious resurrection from the dead. We are approaching that most important, climactic section of Matthew’s Gospel where, in the very next verses of our text, Jesus begins to clearly tell His disciples of His coming suffering, death and resurrection. (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 15:21-28
Date: Pentecost XIV + 8/17/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

In the hymn, “Beautiful Savior,” we sing of our Savior Jesus Christ calling him “Lord of the nations.” The scripture readings appointed for today all point to the universality of God’s plan of salvation; that God so loved the world; and that God’s plan was worked out in a particular way that can be known as he has communicated it through the inspired Prophetic and Apostolic Scriptures: namely, the covenant begun in Abraham, through the descendents of Israel, culminating in the promised Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. As God promised Abraham, “by your descendents will all the nations of the earth be blessed,” so Jesus concluded his earthly ministry with the command to make known this Good News and make disciples “of all nations.” This day we affirm again the Way, the Truth and the Life: Jesus who said, “no one comes to the Father but by me,” boldly testifying that “there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Now, that should come as a shock to no one. Yet, today we make that age-old affirmation in the face of a new situation. For, especially with today’s heightened awareness of the religion of Islam, and in the mix of a nation founded, in part, on the principle of freedom of religion and religious tolerance, that principle itself seems to have become a religion of sorts, one which will not tolerate the idea that any one religion is more or less true than any other. In other words, either all religions are true, at least to some extent (which is the false doctrine called universalism) or all religions are false (which attitude is called atheism). (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 14:22-33
Date: Pentecost XIII + 8/10/08

The account of Jesus walking on the sea proclaims how God’s plan of salvation reaches its goal in Jesus. The Scriptures often describe salvation using water imagery, and even actual water as in the sacrament of Holy Baptism. In addition, this miracle with others like it serves to assure Christians that God has the power and the will also to protect and guard his people from all disaster. But while these words do address the Christian’s facing of life’s difficulties and troubles, there is an even more fundamental lesson here, and that is the identity and Person of who Jesus truly is and the vital importance for the true, saving faith to make that accurate identification and make sure He is the center of attention.

You’ve heard the phrase “like father, like son.” It used to be a more common thing that a man’s son would go into the same line of work as his father. It used to be more likely, for instance, that the sons of Lutheran pastors would become pastors themselves. Golf has plenty of father/son teams like Tiger and the late Earl Woods, Bob and David Duval, the Davis Loves and so on. Nascar has it’s own dynasties probably the most famous being Lee Petty, his son Richard, his son Kyle, and Richard’s grandson Adam. “Like father, like son” is even more essential when you talk of British royalty as the son and grandsons of Queen Elizabeth are in line to become King someday. Even among American Presidents, John Quincy Adams (1825-29) was the first son of a President, John Adams (1797-1801), to become President. And, of course, our current President George W. Bush (“Bush 43”) is the son of his father George H. W. Bush (“Bush 41”).

“Like father, like son.” This is the underlying principle in this section of Matthew’s Gospel as today’s reading concludes with all the disciples in the boat worshipping Jesus, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 14:13-21
Date: Pentecost XII (Proper 13) + 8/3/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

Martin Luther commends the use of Psalm 145:15-16 to begin asking a blessing before meals:

“The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.”

It is a wonderful prayer most of all because it reminds you that, as Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, life is “more than food, and the body more than clothing” (Mt. 6:25). For the psalm says God does more than merely satisfy physical hunger, but “you satisfy the desire of every living thing.” This is why the Lord’s feeding of the 5,000 in the wilderness was so memorable—not just because of the miracle itself, but because of what it said about Jesus, who He is and what He came to do which is more than to provide food for the tummy, but to satisfy the deepest desire of every living thing; the desire for life not threatened by death, the taking away of the fear of death, the desire for reconciliation with God.

The first desire spoken about in today’s Gospel, however, is not ours but God’s. God desires that all should come to the knowledge of the truth and be saved (1 Tim. 2:4). God desires not “the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11). So, as of first importance, our text reports that when Jesus heard of the murder of John the Baptist, this was a sign and reminder of His own destiny and goal, the giving of His life into death on a cross so that all might be reconciled to God, freed from sin’s slavery, raised to new, eternal life. As much as His human nature recoiled at the horrible thought, this was His ultimate goal and desire—to offer Himself as the one-and-only pure and perfect sacrifice for the sin of the world. So now He withdraws from His more public posture of preaching, teaching and healing. He heads “to a desolate place by Himself.” (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Date: Pentecost X (Proper 11) + 7/20/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

In this great parable chapter of Matthew’s Gospel we need to listen carefully and not confuse especially the two parables having to do with sowing seeds. For, in the first parable of the Sower the seed is the Word of God. The point is that the Word of God is the all-sufficient means of His redeeming and saving sinners. In today’s parable of the wheat and the weeds the seed is not the Word of God but the children of the kingdom, Christians themselves! It is to say that you are the planting of God in His field of the world.

The parable of the wheat and the weeds shows how God is active in establishing his redemptive rule among men in the world even as the archenemy and author of sin and death, the devil, seeks to undermine that rule. Frustration and discouragement threatens Christians as they observe what may seem at times like a losing battle. How does one hang on to the hope of salvation in a world that calls evil good and good evil, denying that there is anything from which we need to be saved? How can we continue to forgive others including our enemies when it’s easier not to mention more satisfying to criticize, judge and condemn? How can we know and live in love amid so much lovelessness? Our faith values and believes in life triumphing over death even as we dwell in a society that has cheapened life and embraced death by the elimination of 47 million unborn children through legal abortion (1973-2006), and that apparently does not include the related killings of assisted suicide or euthanasia. We thank God for his design and gift of marriage and the family even while the devil succeeds in convincing people that sex outside of marriage is not only okay but to be expected and even encouraged, accepting couples living together without marriage as somehow “normal” and many other related issues. This is the picture Jesus was painting when he gave the parable of the wheat and the weeds. (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
Date: Pentecost IX (Proper 10A) + 07/13/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

I guess I’m just “too literal” for my own good. Have you noticed what (it seems to me) is no more than a “knee-jerk” greeting these days? Instead of saying, “Hello,” “Good morning (or afternoon or evening),” or “Greetings,” or “Good day,” it seems most people say something to the effect of “How you doin’?” Now that sounds to me like a question. And I assume a person asking a question does so with some interest in an answer. Of course, most people don’t really think that a person, especially a stranger, is really interested in an evaluation of the degree of your satisfaction with your health or well being at the moment and so most of us, if we answer the question at all, just slough it off with an equally disingenuous, “Fine.” Should you actually begin to answer the question with some evaluation of your physical, emotional, spiritual, financial, vocational or psychological condition, most supposed questioners would probably look at you as if you were crazy. That most people don’t expect an answer is betrayed by the fact that, usually immediately after they ask that question, they just keep talking. So I guess when someone greets you with the question, “How are you doing?” probably the best thing is just to smile and nod your head and say nothing, which will not strike the person greeting you as at all strange, and then any real conversation can commence.

With the text today of the Parable of the Sower, the seed and the soil, before us I’m here to ask you, in all seriousness, that question, “How are you doing?” For it seems this parable was spoken at a moment when there was some question as to the progress or effectiveness of Jesus’ preaching and teaching. As we have seen there was doubt and even resistance to Jesus’ ministry among people in general beginning to grow in chapter 11. Then, of course, St. Matthew reports in chapter 12 that there was the increasing antagonism of the Pharisees and the scribes heating up to the level even of accusing Jesus to be in league with the devil. Finally, even His mother and his brothers (few of whom if any at the time believed in Him) seemed to be questioning where things were going with all the increasing controversy over Him. Was Jesus really following the best path, employing the most efficient means, choosing His words carefully enough, communicating effectively with his audience? Was he unnecessarily offending or turning people off to His message? Maybe He needed to take a break, cool His jets, reevaluate His methods and His message. It was in this context that Jesus spoke the Parable of the Sower or of the seed and the soil. (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 11:25-30
Date: Pentecost VIII (Proper 9) + 7/6/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

When our Lord Jesus Christ spoke these most comforting, inviting, empowering Gospel words, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” He was speaking, frankly, out of a bit of exasperation. We could call chapter 11 of Matthew’s Gospel “the great doubt chapter,” beginning with John the Baptist in prison sending his disciples to ask Jesus whether He really is the Messiah or if they should look for someone else. Whether it was the Baptist himself or only his disciples who doubted, Jesus invited faith as He pointed to His works and said, “blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” Then as they returned to John, Jesus turned to the crowds around Him and quizzed them as to their faith and opinions and doubts. He pointed out how people generally had things quite upside down, saying, “for John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard.’” Then it was as if His blood pressure had reached its limit as “He began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent.” “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum…if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”

It was at that moment, and with that intense emotion, that the Lord of life, mercy and grace said a prayer; but a prayer that transformed into a gracious invitation. At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children.” What things? Well, think about it. First John the Baptist’s disciples were doubting, then there is a more general confusion among the people, and there is resistance to hear, to repent and to believe. “These things” are everything that has to do with the Gospel of salvation. And that they are variously hidden or revealed says that the way of this salvation is by faith. And furthermore that this thing called faith is a gift of God worked through His Word. (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 10:24-33
Date: Pentecost VI (Proper 7) + 6/22/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

As the Good News of the Gospel was being fulfilled in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, from beginning to end the story is punctuated with the comforting words, “Do not be afraid.” These were the words of the angel to Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, and to Mary, the mother of Jesus. Likewise when the angel appeared to the women at the empty tomb after Jesus’ death he said, “Do not be afraid.” Throughout Jesus active ministry he calmed his disciples’ fears with these words as he revealed God’s plan of salvation in him as well as what it means for them.

In the tenth chapter of Matthew, Jesus told his disciples that he was sending them out “as sheep among wolves” describing and predicting the opposition they would encounter because of the Word and the faith they were sent to proclaim. Rather than being a fearful thing, however, he repeated those same, comforting words, “have no fear,” “do not fear,” “fear not.” Today we ask, of what are you afraid? If we can discover that all fear ultimately is rooted in our separation from God, our sin and fear of punishment for sin, then we can discover also that the key to overcoming fear is reconciliation with God by God’s own gift of faith. The Faith that Overcomes all Fear is the faith created and strengthened in the believer by God through his Word. (more…)

 

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Text: Matthew 9:35—10:8
Date: Pentecost V (Proper 6) + 6/15/08
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI

In this “information age” we hear a lot these days about identity theft. You certainly have seen or heard the ads by a man named Todd Davis who boldly blabs his social security number (457-55-5462) to illustrate his confidence in the service of his company, Lifelock, which claims to guarantee the protection of your name and personal information from being stolen. Now, of course, this has to do with your legal and financial records and not the real essence of your identity which includes everything from your physical appearance, your genealogy, to your personality, interests, abilities, talents and vocation. Each person is a unique creation of God and it is the combination of all those traits and characteristics that determine not only what you do but who you are. And though a certain few traits, talents and abilities may have a major influence on what you do with and in your life, there is at the same time an amazing variety and freedom to pursue a wide range of occupations, vocations and avocations especially suited to your particular life, interests and identity.

For the Christian the question is, what is God’s will for your life? What and who has God made you to be?

As I was growing up the one most obvious interest, talent and ability I had was music. It included a wide variety of musical instruments, but all based on the foundation of years of piano lessons and an ability to hear, imitate and improvise. By high school that’s “who” I was, “the musician.” You can imagine, then, my incredulity and skepticism when the Kuder career planning test came back with “musician” in the number two slot. Number one for me, according to the test, was “funeral director” or “mortician!” Well, God wasn’t finished with me by a long shot and, as things worked out, “Lutheran pastor” is certainly related to the task of helping people to deal with death and dying.

A favorite illustration is about the young Christian man who determined that he wanted to be a missionary in France. After all his preparation and studies in theology and the French language he ended up an effective missionary in Quebec Canada! In other words he had the right idea and preparation, just a different place as it worked out.

The Word before us today is about the identity of God’s people in the world and what that identity means for their role, their purpose and mission in the world. [And let me say that these texts happen before us appropriately the Sunday of the week of our meeting with our Michigan District President, Mission executive and circuit counselor this Wednesday]. This Word hinges on the mystery of how God has chosen to bring salvation to people by means of transmitting His Word through people He has set apart to be, as He said through Moses, “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” In the New Testament this same phrase is used by the Apostle Peter when he writes, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). Your identity as “a royal priesthood” and “a holy nation” directly translates, then, into your mission as representatives of the kingdom or rule of God in the world and the work of a “priesthood,” that is, intercessors or communicators between God and the world. (more…)