“My Beloved Son” (Matthew 17:1-9)

Matthew 17:1-9

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Pastor Tom Johnson, February 26, 2017

In Jesus’ Transfiguration, God dials things up. He turns it up for the same reasons we turn up the volume when we hear our favorite music. He wants to make sure we hear, see, understand, and experience who this Jesus is. Jesus takes three of his disciples—Peter, James, and John—up—high upon mountain. Jesus raises the disciples to a higher altitude. Something important is about to happen. They are physically raised to a higher place. Jesus is then transfigured before them at this high altitude. His face shines like the sun, His clothes become white as light. God dials up the brightness of Jesus. His glory is intensified. He no longer appears as a mere human being. Moses and Elijah show up—two of the greatest prophets. They point to Jesus as the true Messiah. God turns up the dial of validation—authenticating and certifying that this Jesus of Nazareth is the long-awaited Messiah. And Peter is caught up in the moment. He wants what he sees to be a permanent fixture. He wants to set up three tents and begin a campaign for Jesus as Messiah with Moses and Elijah flanking his sides and Peter, James, and John in their train.

God does not even let that thought live for a moment—God interrupts Peter in mid-sentence, our text says, “he was still speaking” when a bright cloud engulfs them. God turns up the brightness and loudness again. Peter, James, and John are now swallowed up by a bright cloud and their bones are rattled by a loud, authoritative voice. This is one of the very rare examples we have of God Himself speaking. And He says, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.”

More than just a title, God the Father identifies Jesus as God. He is true Messiah but he is also the eternal Son of God. The amazing thing is that Jesus is even louder, brighter, and higher than what we experience at the Transfiguration. This transfiguration is just a taste—just a glimpse—just a whisper of the greatness and glory that is Jesus. You will remember that the Son of God took on human flesh when He was born of the virgin Mary. The eternal Son of God was high and lifted up on the right hand of God the Father. Higher than any mountain, He existed and moved far beyond what we call time and space. The great miracle was not that Jesus was standing up high on a mountain. The great miracle is that God is with us and came down to our level. His high-ness was veiled and hidden from our eyes. But not on this day. Peter, James, and John got a little taste of how exalted He truly is.

And so it is with brightness of Jesus’ face and the loudness of God’s voice. If the three saw Jesus in His absolute brightness, they would be turned to ash. If they heard the full volume of the loudness, they would be vaporized. It was mercy that they merely fell on their faces and were terrified. God does not want to crush us or destroy us with Jesus’ glory—he wants to transform us. God wants our vision of Jesus to lead to life-transformation. God wants to intensify our understanding of His Son—He wants to turn up the volume, brightness, and altitude of our awe, wonder, and reverence of Jesus. And he does so to reorient our lives and set us on a new course with vision and mission. “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.” Don’t just remember this mountain-top experience—let it inform and guide you in the dark valleys. Listen to Him. Let his Word dwell richly in your heart.

It is while Peter, James, and John still have their faces buried in the dirt trying to escape the brightness and loudness that Jesus approaches them. Our texts says He simply “touched them.” And He speaks good news: “Rise, and have no fear.” Jesus’ mission is not to exalt himself but to humble himself. He comes down to us with our faces buried in the dirt of our shame and guilt. He comes to lift us up. He tells us to rise and have no fear. Perfect love casts out fear. The touch and Word of Jesus drives out fear of condemnation, shame, and even death itself. And the ultimate source of that life-transforming power is ahead of them—Jesus’ glory, power, and majesty will hidden again from their eyes.

Jesus says, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.” Jesus will appear to be overcome by death—but it will be he who has overcome death and the grave. He will be raised from the dead. His body will once again shine like the sun. His voice will once again shake the foundations of the earth. But it is only after He humbles Himself to suffer, die, and rise again from the dead. It is only through that hidden glory that we will be lifted up. Revelation says that we will have no need for sun or moon because of the brightness of his glory. Revelation also says that we will be part of a multitude of nations that no human can number. Because of the Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, we will be lifted up in the bright robes of his righteousness—forgiven, restored, and transformed by God’s beloved Son. We will shine more brightly than the midday sun. We are—and forever will be—his beloved daughters and sons.

“You are God’s Temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16)

1 Corinthians 3:10-11,16-23

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Pastor Tom Johnson, February 19, 2017

“You know you are the Temple of God, don’t you? You know the Holy Spirit dwells in you, don’t you?” You’ll remember that God’s Temple began as a large tent in the wilderness. They called it the Tabernacle. It was a portable Temple. Details of its construction are at the end of the book of Exodus. It was built the finest material and precious metals. It was broken down as the people of God traveled. It was rebuilt each time they reached their destination. For 40 years, this was the place to meet with God and where God met with his people. The glory of God—which looked like a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night led and dwelled among the people of God. And when they erected the Tabernacle, the glory of God would take up temporary residence. And so it was for many generations even when they entered the Promised Land. The Tabernacle remained the center of worship, sacrifices, and the forgiveness of sins until King David. But God would not let him but his son Solomon build it.

So when the time came, Solomon only had to say the word and they built it. It was a permanent structure—built out of precious stone, cedar, fabric, gold, and silver. When Solomon dedicated the Temple, he prayed these words:

“But will you, O God, indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built! …Hear the plea of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place; O hear in heaven your dwelling place; heed and forgive. ...Likewise when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel…comes and prays toward this house, then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name…” (1 Kings 8:27-43). Even the Temple made of stone in Jerusalem was to bless not just the people of God—but every tribe, nation, tongue, and people—just as God promised to bless Abraham and his family and, through them, bless all the families of the earth. Sadly, it was the people of God that got in the way of God’s vision and plan. Kings and queens rose up who served their own interests and not God’s mission. There were generations who forgot their greater purpose and call. The Temple was there to remind the Israelites of God’s universal reign. It’s purpose was not to give them a false sense of security to protect them from foreign threats. It’s purpose was to draw everyone in to God’s blessings and peace.

Solomon’s Temple was destroyed when God’s people were attacked by the Babylonians nearly 600 years before Christ. Nehemiah rebuilt the Temple a generation later—less glorious—so much it made those who remembered the first Temple grieve and weep. Jesus would predicted the destruction of the second Temple which happen in 70 AD. And maybe that is why Paul tells us that there is a new Temple being built—not one brick at a time—but one life-transformation at a time.

“You know you are the Temple of God, don’t you? You know the Holy Spirit dwells in you, don’t you?” Paul is concerned that the same kind of arrogance and division will undermine God’s Temple just as it did before. Just like before, there are threats on every side. And it is tempting to live in fear and to trust in the strength of human leaders. It is easy to follow the path of least resistance and look only after ourselves and put our energy into self-preservation. Some people thought that Paul or Apollos or Peter had the answer. It is not unlike our divisions today whether they are different denominations or camps. “No,” Paul says, “There is only one foundation to this Temple—that is Jesus Christ.” We build with humility—not the wisdom of humanity—but the wisdom of God. We know that it is a privilege to serve God and one another. We know that we build Christ’s Church not by our strength but by the sweat and blood of Jesus who carried his Cross and gave his life for the world.

“You know you are the Temple of God, don’t you? You know the Holy Spirit dwells in you, don’t you?” What an exciting time! We are living in the third and final wave of Temple construction. This new Temple is not just portable and headed toward the Promised Land. This new Temple is not just being constructed in one city among a people of one ethnic heritage. It is universal. The Holy Spirit is breaking ground all around the world—boldly ignoring human borders—joyfully bringing diverse people together into one building project. A new Temple construction has already begun. It is not built of costly fabrics, wood, stone, gold, or silver—but of you, and you, and you—and of them—whoever they may be—those God is calling to himself. This building has one Name upon its foundation: Jesus Christ. He is the one who lived, died, and rose again to unite people from all over the world and bring them into one structure of grace, mercy, and love. There is a beautiful slogan placarded on this new Temple: “All belong to you. You belong to Christ. Christ belongs to God.” We are co-heirs. We are vested. We are God’s investment paid with his blood. Christ is God’s gift to the world. You are God’s Temple for the world.

“You know you are the Temple of God, don’t you? You know the Holy Spirit dwells in you, don’t you?”

O Spirit, who didst once restore
Thy Church that it might be again
The bringer of good news to men
Breath on Thy cloven Church once more.
That in these gray and latter days
There may be those whose life is praise,
Each life a high doxology
To Father, Son, and unto Thee.
          ("O God, O Lord of Heaven and Earth" LSB 834, v. 1)

“The severity of the Law” (Matthew 5:21-37)

Matthew 5:21-37

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Pastor Tom Johnson, February 12, 2017

Jesus’ words in from our Gospel reading is just a portion of his Sermon on the Mount. And in many respects it is the most difficult part of his sermon. The main topic today is two of the Ten Commandments: you shall not murder and you shall not commit adultery. Most of the Bible comes to us by human authors. Each book of the Bible reflects the personality and writing style of its writer. Sometimes we may think that the Bible dropped out of heaven as one book. Instead it was written by many authors, in various languages, across different continents, and over several centuries. But the Ten Commandments did drop out of heaven. God himself inscribed these words into stone tablets. Moses was the courier—not the messenger—as he carried the Word of God down from Mt. Sinai. But later, Moses does help God’s people understand the Ten Commandments in the book of Exodus. He explains all the ways one is guilty or not guilty of murder and adultery for example. And he details the consequences of murder and adultery. And it is often as severe as death.

Without that understanding, it is easy to miss just how radical Jesus’ words are here. Three times he says, “You have heard that it was said” and he quotes the Ten Commandments and the words of Moses. “You have heard that it was said…but I say to you…” When he introduces his interpretation, he is saying that he is a higher authority than the Ten Commandments and Moses. You have heard the Ten Commandments that caused the earth to quake and you heard Moses whose face had to be veiled because it shone the glory of God. The Ten Commandments and Moses say some challenging and great things but Jesus’ words will forever transform our understanding. Jesus' words about the Law are like going into an enormous cave. The further we go into it, the less light. We realize just how tiny we are when we go through rooms with ceilings as high as cathedrals echoing into nothingness.

Murder no longer is just the act. It’s is the anger and resentment we have in our hearts. Murder are the insults we say. It’s is when we do nothing to reconcile with one another. Adultery is no longer just the act. It’s looking at a person with lust in one’s heart. It’s unfaithfulness in our minds. It is causing others to stumble into sin. It why we confessed our sins earlier in the service the way we did: “We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone.” Earlier in this same sermon—what we had in our reading from last week—Jesus says that he has not come to abolish the Law but fulfill it. He has come to bring us a full understanding of the Law. And that the Law fulfill it’s purpose—to show just how high God’s standard is. The Law is so demanding, that we must obey it—not just outwardly in our actions—but also in our inner world—in our thoughts and intentions of the heart. Next week our reading will finish this teaching of the Law by saying, “Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.”

We are highlighting our heritage in the Reformation this 500th anniversary year. One of the earliest insights into the Law is that it always accuses (Apology of the Augsburg Confession). Lex semper accusat. That is to say, no one can say, “I have kept God’s commandments.” None of us can earn God’s love by trying to be better. If God’s standard of righteousness is absolute obedience to both the letter and spirit of the Law we all fall short. In fact, that is what Scripture says: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). And why is this helpful? How can this possibly be good news? Because the only solution is grace. Forgiveness cannot be earned. Eternal life cannot be purchased. We do not deserve salvation. But God is gracious and merciful. He loves us even though we have failed. He delights in extending grace and mercy through his Son. Christ died and rose again for us. And God gives the salvation Jesus purchased for us for free.

Today is a contrast between the darkness of sin and the light of God’s grace—to take a hard and honest look at sin to see forgiveness in all its clarity—to hear the accusation of the Law so that we see that, in Jesus, it has been silenced. The Law shows our sin; the Gospel shows our Savior. The Law reveals our darkness; the Gospel reveals Christ’s light. The Law declares us guilty; the Gospel declares us forgiven. Jesus fulfills the Law demands so that we can benefit from the Gospel’s blessings. One preacher (Robbie Flock) said it this way: “It is of no use trying to sew with the silken thread of the Gospel unless we pierce a way for it with the sharp needle of the law.” And so God sews up our mortal wounds.
Like a good doctor he says, “This is going to hurt.” And so the Law wounds our pride and accuses. He is making a way for the silken thread of the Gospel. He binds up our mortal wounds. “You are going to be okay,” he says. Christ’s death and resurrection has restored you. He has triumphed over sin and death.

“You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14-16)

Matthew 5:14-16

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Pastor Tom Johnson, February 5, 2017

President Ronald Reagan had a vision of what the United States of America should be. It was a shining city on a hill. President John F. Kennedy said the same thing. Both were quoting John Winthrop, an early colonist more than 300 years before who saw their Massachusetts Bay Colony as a call from God. The idea is that, as a nation, we are a positive example to the rest of the world—that we are a beacon of light to help other peoples navigate their way to freedom and the pursuit of happiness. They are all quoting Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount when he says, “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one
after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”

In John’s Gospel, Jesus says, “I am the Light of the world.” Jesus is the light who comes from heaven. He scatters the darkness of sin, evil, and death through his life, death, and resurrection. He brings the brightness of hope and joy—the splendor of forgiveness of eternal life. But here Jesus says, “You are the light of the world.” You and I are the light of the world. We are the radiance of God’s glory. We are the brightness of Christ that brings the brilliance of the good news to the nations. As Christ builds his Church on earth—as he gathers us together to be a family of faith—he wants us to be an example to the unbelieving world. He wants Christians to lead the way by how we love God, one another, and the world.

That means the world is watching. People are paying attention to us. Jesus has put us on notice that our behavior as God’s people is being monitored. We have an audience at all times. They are looking to us for a reason to believe. Or to put it an even more frightening way—they are looking for a reason not to believe. Every time there is a scandal in the church we provide another reason for people not to come to church. Right away, Jesus anticipates that it is not as easy as it sounds. It is a challenge. There will be obstacles in the way. And often we ourselves are own obstacle. Jesus calls believers to fulfill their calling to be light to the world. When we fail to accept and love one another—even with all our differences—we add to the cynicism in the world. “See, they are not any different,” the world will say, “They cannot overcome our differences any more than us.” When we back-stab—when we exploit others just as much—when we are just as greedy—when we gossip just as much—when we are just as competitive against one another, we are putting a huge bushel basket over the lamp of the Gospel.

50 years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. lamented the fact that Sunday morning is the most segregated day of the week. The Lord’s Day should not be the day we find people who look just like us or talk like us or think like us. “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples,” Jesus says, “if you have love for one another.” Sadly, things have changed very little in the last 50 years. It seems that the world knows more about what we Christians do not like and what we are against than anything else. Our negativity is not light. It is darkness. Our lack of love for each other—our failure to do good for those around us will prevent our light from shining. Jesus says when that happens it is absurd. It is just as foolish as lighting a lamp and putting a bushel basket over it. It is as ridiculous as flipping the switch to turn a lamp on in your home and then to put a large garbage bag over it. It is as absurd as turning on your car’s headlights only to spray-paint over the glass.

Jesus says, “Don’t be foolish.” “Let your light shine! When they see positivity—when they experience the acceptance and love of God—when they see true reconciliation between those who were once enemies, they will glorify God.” We do not shine to earn God’s love, we shine because of it. This year we celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. One of the common representations of the Reformation in Luther’s day was a hand removing a bushel basket from the light of a candle atop an open Bible. When people heard the good news of Jesus so clearly and when they heard about safe and free communities of faith, people traveled from all over Europe to go to Germany to rediscover the Gospel and take it back with them to their own communities. And so it is still Jesus’ vision for us as the Body of Christ.

“There is something different about those followers of Jesus,” they will say. “Look at how they have come together—of every tribe, nation, tongue, and people. Look at how they forgive their enemies and accept people with such diverse backgrounds. Look at how they believe that no matter how dark one’s past is—with all of the pain, grief, sin, and death—no matter how dark one’s soul can be—the light of Christ will always overcome.” Dear believer, that light shines through you and me. You and I illuminate the world with God’s love. We manifest the glory of God. We the Church reveal what is too often hidden about the Kingdom. Our light and love will be the fuel for the world to also believe. We are entrusted with showing why the death and resurrection of Jesus is still relevant today. We are the light of the world.