Easter 5 - Cantate May 15, 2022
John 16:5-15
Knowing What's Good For You
v.7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper/Comforter will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you.
Alleluia! Christ the Lord is Risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Dear friends in Christ, what a day this is! Cantate Sunday--Sing Sunday! A day of great rejoicing and praise in the life of the church, which is so reflective of the joy that we celebrate this Easter season. The church sings. She sings to her God for the wondrous things that He has done. We sing in good times and in bad--in darkness and light--in sadness and joy! We sing because Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Beloved, our text this day comes from the Holy Gospel of St. John. Once again, we have Jesus speaking to His disciples on the night in which He will be betrayed into the hands of sinners. He has told them, in no uncertain terms, that He is going away--that He will suffer and die--and He will go to the One who has sent Him--the Father. This talk of Jesus going to the Father fills the disciples' hearts with sorrow. For they do not understand the great good that will come from this act of Jesus. They can only comprehend their present circumstances. They fail to understand the goodness that will be theirs from this necessary work of Jesus.
Beloved, we do not always realize what is for our own good, do we? And we sometimes grow angry and upset when we think we are being denied something that is good for us. We are, at times, like little children who throw tantrums at being denied the pleasure of running into a busy street to play. We, who love them and stop them, do so for their own good--but they just can't see it. This is, after all, the same pattern of behaviour that incited the Fall of mankind into sin. Adam and Eve saw a fruit--a single fruit--in the midst of an entire Garden. And they saw that it was beautiful--and that it was good to make one wise (having listened to the serpent--the devil)--they grasped at what had not been given for their good--which God had commanded them not to eat, for their own good--and sent all creation into the depths and brokenness of sin and death.
But Jesus is telling His disciples that it is for their good that He goes away to the Father. For how will He go to the Father? By means of the cross. The cross of Jesus, which is for our ultimate good--for on it the Christ will suffer and die for the sins of the whole world--for your sins and mine--that by the fruit of the tree of the cross--the curse of the eating of the fruit of the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden--might be undone. Christ's shed blood cleanses you of the guilt of your sin--Christ's shed blood quickens your soul and grants you everlasting life--the blood of Christ breaks the strangle hold of Satan over you and sends him spiraling into the depths of hell to be bound for all eternity.
It is no wonder that we sing for joy on this Sunday! For our Lord Jesus has loved us so much that He willingly endured the suffering and shame of the cross. He did so not only for the disciples--but for the entire world of all time--for sinners like you and me. For you are sinners. You are under the weight and curse of sin. You are convicted by the Holy Spirit who through the Law of God shows you what a sinner you are. For you have failed to love your neighbour as yourself. You have coveted the gifts of others--you have taken that which did not belong to you--you have disparaged the holiness of the gift of marriage and defiled it in thought, word and deed. You have murdered your neighbour in your heart with unkind thoughts and words. You have spoken falsely of those around you in your gossip during coffee break. You have not honoured those given by God to be in authority over you--be it in your family--your community and nation--or in your church.
But what is worse is the fact that we have all set up false gods in our hearts. We have worshiped the created rather than the Creator. We set ourselves up as the ultimate authority--seeking and worshiping our pleasure and own felt needs--instead of looking to Christ and His Word for our every good. We have forsaken the holy day of the Lord to pursue our own interests and we misuse God's own holy name to curse rather than to bless--and fail to pray and speak the truth of God as we ought. For all these and so much more--you and I are most certainly guilty and deserving of everlasting death and damnation in hell.
Yet, by the Holy Spirit, the world is also convicted in righteousness. By the blood of Jesus outpoured on the cross, the sins of the whole world have been atoned for. The debt of humanity's sin has been wiped out by the redeeming flood of Christ's righteousness that He earned with His own suffering, death, and resurrection. Yet God does not force Himself on any one. He offers this righteousness--this forgiveness and mercy--as a free gift. And, as with any gift, it can be rejected. For those who reject this gift of faith in Christ given by the Holy Spirit--those who say, "I don't need, nor want you, Jesus,"--the Holy Spirit convicts them of sin for they do not believe in Jesus. But to all who do receive Him--who believe in His name--God gives the right to be called children of God.
You, beloved, are God's children. Not by your works of love and compassion to your neighbour--as good and right and necessary as those are--but purely through faith in the work of Jesus on the cross. You are saved--by God's grace--through faith in Christ--alone. Nothing more. Nothing less. The Spirit of truth--the Comforter--has come to point you to Jesus your Saviour. So that you might be forever comforted amidst life's trials and hardships--as well as life's joys and triumphs. You may always look to Jesus and His death on the cross for your every good.
On the cross Jesus also broke the power of the evil one himself. This is why the Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning judgement--that the ruler of this world is judged. That is the devil. This is the very petition that we pray in the Lord's Prayer--deliver us from evil (the evil one). This Christ has done by being the sacrifice for your sin. He has taken your place under God's just wrath for your sin. He has borne it all on the cross--drunk the full cup of the wrath of God so that He might bestow on you the cup of God's blessing. In your Baptism the devil has been cast out of your heart as the Holy Spirit has moved in and taken up residence. He speaks to you all that is Christ's and declares to you through Word and Sacrament the saving work of Jesus on the cross for you and all people.
What joy it is to gather together and receive the blessings that Christ earned with His body and blood on the cross. In His Holy Supper He gives to the penitent, believing Christian the full redemption of all sins, eternal life, and salvation from the power of the devil. All this He has done--for your own good. Is it any wonder then that we lift up our voices and sing this day? For Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
John 16:5-15
Knowing What's Good For You
v.7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper/Comforter will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you.
Alleluia! Christ the Lord is Risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Dear friends in Christ, what a day this is! Cantate Sunday--Sing Sunday! A day of great rejoicing and praise in the life of the church, which is so reflective of the joy that we celebrate this Easter season. The church sings. She sings to her God for the wondrous things that He has done. We sing in good times and in bad--in darkness and light--in sadness and joy! We sing because Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Beloved, our text this day comes from the Holy Gospel of St. John. Once again, we have Jesus speaking to His disciples on the night in which He will be betrayed into the hands of sinners. He has told them, in no uncertain terms, that He is going away--that He will suffer and die--and He will go to the One who has sent Him--the Father. This talk of Jesus going to the Father fills the disciples' hearts with sorrow. For they do not understand the great good that will come from this act of Jesus. They can only comprehend their present circumstances. They fail to understand the goodness that will be theirs from this necessary work of Jesus.
Beloved, we do not always realize what is for our own good, do we? And we sometimes grow angry and upset when we think we are being denied something that is good for us. We are, at times, like little children who throw tantrums at being denied the pleasure of running into a busy street to play. We, who love them and stop them, do so for their own good--but they just can't see it. This is, after all, the same pattern of behaviour that incited the Fall of mankind into sin. Adam and Eve saw a fruit--a single fruit--in the midst of an entire Garden. And they saw that it was beautiful--and that it was good to make one wise (having listened to the serpent--the devil)--they grasped at what had not been given for their good--which God had commanded them not to eat, for their own good--and sent all creation into the depths and brokenness of sin and death.
But Jesus is telling His disciples that it is for their good that He goes away to the Father. For how will He go to the Father? By means of the cross. The cross of Jesus, which is for our ultimate good--for on it the Christ will suffer and die for the sins of the whole world--for your sins and mine--that by the fruit of the tree of the cross--the curse of the eating of the fruit of the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden--might be undone. Christ's shed blood cleanses you of the guilt of your sin--Christ's shed blood quickens your soul and grants you everlasting life--the blood of Christ breaks the strangle hold of Satan over you and sends him spiraling into the depths of hell to be bound for all eternity.
It is no wonder that we sing for joy on this Sunday! For our Lord Jesus has loved us so much that He willingly endured the suffering and shame of the cross. He did so not only for the disciples--but for the entire world of all time--for sinners like you and me. For you are sinners. You are under the weight and curse of sin. You are convicted by the Holy Spirit who through the Law of God shows you what a sinner you are. For you have failed to love your neighbour as yourself. You have coveted the gifts of others--you have taken that which did not belong to you--you have disparaged the holiness of the gift of marriage and defiled it in thought, word and deed. You have murdered your neighbour in your heart with unkind thoughts and words. You have spoken falsely of those around you in your gossip during coffee break. You have not honoured those given by God to be in authority over you--be it in your family--your community and nation--or in your church.
But what is worse is the fact that we have all set up false gods in our hearts. We have worshiped the created rather than the Creator. We set ourselves up as the ultimate authority--seeking and worshiping our pleasure and own felt needs--instead of looking to Christ and His Word for our every good. We have forsaken the holy day of the Lord to pursue our own interests and we misuse God's own holy name to curse rather than to bless--and fail to pray and speak the truth of God as we ought. For all these and so much more--you and I are most certainly guilty and deserving of everlasting death and damnation in hell.
Yet, by the Holy Spirit, the world is also convicted in righteousness. By the blood of Jesus outpoured on the cross, the sins of the whole world have been atoned for. The debt of humanity's sin has been wiped out by the redeeming flood of Christ's righteousness that He earned with His own suffering, death, and resurrection. Yet God does not force Himself on any one. He offers this righteousness--this forgiveness and mercy--as a free gift. And, as with any gift, it can be rejected. For those who reject this gift of faith in Christ given by the Holy Spirit--those who say, "I don't need, nor want you, Jesus,"--the Holy Spirit convicts them of sin for they do not believe in Jesus. But to all who do receive Him--who believe in His name--God gives the right to be called children of God.
You, beloved, are God's children. Not by your works of love and compassion to your neighbour--as good and right and necessary as those are--but purely through faith in the work of Jesus on the cross. You are saved--by God's grace--through faith in Christ--alone. Nothing more. Nothing less. The Spirit of truth--the Comforter--has come to point you to Jesus your Saviour. So that you might be forever comforted amidst life's trials and hardships--as well as life's joys and triumphs. You may always look to Jesus and His death on the cross for your every good.
On the cross Jesus also broke the power of the evil one himself. This is why the Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning judgement--that the ruler of this world is judged. That is the devil. This is the very petition that we pray in the Lord's Prayer--deliver us from evil (the evil one). This Christ has done by being the sacrifice for your sin. He has taken your place under God's just wrath for your sin. He has borne it all on the cross--drunk the full cup of the wrath of God so that He might bestow on you the cup of God's blessing. In your Baptism the devil has been cast out of your heart as the Holy Spirit has moved in and taken up residence. He speaks to you all that is Christ's and declares to you through Word and Sacrament the saving work of Jesus on the cross for you and all people.
What joy it is to gather together and receive the blessings that Christ earned with His body and blood on the cross. In His Holy Supper He gives to the penitent, believing Christian the full redemption of all sins, eternal life, and salvation from the power of the devil. All this He has done--for your own good. Is it any wonder then that we lift up our voices and sing this day? For Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.