Genesis 28:10=17/Ephesians 4:22-28/St Matthew 9:1-8
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
It is our practice each Sunday to bring before the Lord our God and Father those whom we love who are hurt or ill, who are homebound or recovering, those who are suffering in some way or another. This is not limited of course, to the gathered congregation at prayer. You do this in your private prayers as well. Such is not merely common in the Christian Church and life; but in fact marks the faithfulness of our Lord’s dear children.
And for those who are ill, those who are hurting, those who are sick and dying, those for whom we provide care, those under our protection - parents and grandparents, friends and neighbors, even children - our prayers exhibit two things: a deep and earnest desire for these to be freed from their illness and suffering, from their sorrow and pain. And also, a deep and abiding trust in the good and gracious will of the Lord our God who has loved us in Christ Jesus His Son our Lord. For all such prayers are tempered by the Third Petition of the Our Father: Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
The good and gracious will of God is indeed done even without our prayers. And sometimes, often times, His good and gracious will is contrary to the expectations of our flesh. It is most certainly always contrary to the thoughts of the world and the evil ravings of the devil. Such is exemplified in this Gospel lesson.
St Matthew records that Jesus came to His own city. Only it is not Nazareth. Nor is it Bethlehem. Rather His own city is Capernaum. The home of Simon Peter and his family. The base of operations for Matthew the tax collector. That Jesus calls it His own ought not be dismissed or overlooked. For our Lord Christ, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, descended from heaven and came unto His own, but His own received Him not. And only two chapters hence our Lord shall exclaim: And you Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For 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 (Mt 11:23-24).
Though it is laid up for destruction worse than Sodom, yet He has a remnant within her; even as Lot and his family resided in that wicked city. So take heart, dear ones, that our Lord deigns to call anyone or anything His own is a rich and profound blessing. For such does He call you. His own dear children. His own redeemed. His own ransomed. His own people, marked with His own Name, re-created for Himself. His own for whom His heart longs and His own upon whom His mercy is displayed.
And behold some people brought to Him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And when Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Be of courage, My child, your sins are forgiven.” Such is the absolute posture of faith. Not merely of the paralytic who could do nothing for himself; who was at the mercy of his friends, who took pity upon him. His life was indeed lived solely by dependence upon the charity and kindness, upon the compassion and care of others. But that Jesus beholds their faith - the faith of the friends!
This may be an exercise of His divine omniscience, but it need not be. For faith is not merely a private matter of the heart. It constantly and continually, without prodding, brings forth good works according to the will and Word of the Lord, even as St Paul exhorts the Ephesians, Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. In posture before the Lord , faith always receives. It is passive, as the paralytic on the mat. It is always looking to Jesus, bringing to Him our needs and our desires, our fears and anxieties, as the friends carry the one for whom they care, the one for whom they sacrifice. Faith expressed in such works is visible to behold. It does not simply reside in the heart, but is made known in the mouth and in the life.
And such faith that looks to Jesus as its Author and Perfecter, always and only desires one thing above all else: the forgiveness of sins. This is not to say that the wants and needs of the body are nothing or meaningless. Nor is it to imply that our Lord does not concern Himself with them. Our gracious God and Father cares for all your needs of body and soul, possessions and reputation. And out of His fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, He provides all that you need to support this body and life.
But that faith seeks above all the free and full forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ is to recognize that this is the good and gracious will of your Father in heaven. All else hinges on this. Where there is the forgiveness of sins there is life, true life, everlasting Life in Christ Jesus, our crucified, risen, and glorified Lord and Savior. Where there is the forgiveness of sins there is salvation, free and everlasting, rescue from all perils to body and soul, from sin, death, and the power of the devil. Such is the prerogative of the Lord your God. Such is His good and gracious will.
And thus the outrage and unbelief of the scribes who among themselves, accuse Jesus of blasphemy. For only God can forgive sins! This is true. Who scarcely believes that the Pastor forgives sins in the stead and by the command of Christ? Who scarcely believes, even among Lutherans, that my forgiveness is God’s forgiveness? Such is the nature of false doctrine and misbelief - its deprives you of your most precious treasures. As Dr Luther says, “If we truly knew what the [Absolution] is we should be willing to run more than a hundred miles to receive it” (Exhortation to Confession]. Not as the voice of a man, but as the very voice of God in heaven who has given such authority to men as the way and means by which He alone forgives the sins of repentant sinners.
But the scribes and unbelievers do not care for such a precious and noble gift! They blaspheme concerning this good and gracious will of God. But Jesus, seeing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your heart?” Once again, His perception need not be a use of His divine omniscience. For just as faith in the heart is seen and evidenced in the life and word. So is unbelief seen in action and primarily in rejection of the pure and beloved doctrine of the forgiveness of sins.
The Word confronts such unbelief and puts to them, Which is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Rise and walk?” Now is seems apparent that is is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven.” For one to say, “Rise and walk,” and the individual does not do so, it becomes obvious that that man is a fraud or a charlatan. Forgiveness is unseen. Miracles and faith healing are visible.
And they are attractive to the flesh! The scribes want a Messiah who will exert power by healing all disease, curing all illness, fixing all palsied limbs. And so does the unbelieving world! “If only the Church did what Jesus did, or what the Apostles did in Acts - miracles and healing - then I would believe; then it would be easier to be a Christian!” It might be true. But all we do, Pastors and people, the Christian Church, is stand around forgiving sins. And the world scoffs and blasphemes!
I am not convinced that it is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven.” For not only does such pronouncement bring scoffers and doubters, but it comes at a great and terrible price. Whether forgiving sins or healing the paralyzed, our Lord Jesus is restoring fallen creation. Only one is temporal and the other eternal. Limbs once paralyzed may become so again. The effects of age and disease, symptoms of a greater problem, linger on and grow and increase all the more as death draws near. The man took up his bed and went home. He would eventually return to that bed in his death and be buried. So too shall all of you. So too shall all of your loved ones for whom we pray and you pray. Even if they get better; it is only temporary.
But the forgiveness of sins is eternal. And its pronouncement came at at great price. Absolution is costly. Not that it costs you anything. But it cost the Son of Man, the Lord God of Abraham in the flesh, everything. In order to restore fallen creation, in order to heal paralyzed limbs, to raise the dead, and above all - in order to forgive sins - our Lord Jesus Christ must take those sins upon Himself, all of them, and die. He must come to His own, even though they reject Him and don’t want His sacrifice, and He must become their Sin in order to put it to death, in order to bring Life and Immortality to Light!
And such has He done for you! The GodMan, Jesus Christ, took your sin, made it His own, and bore the wrath and punishment of the Father on your behalf. In blessed exchange He has given you a new self, created after the very likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. This He has put on you in Holy Baptism, raising you from your death bed, giving you His eternal healing, and sending you to the Home and House of His Father and your Father in heaven.
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him. According to His good and gracious will He has given it you, His Church, that is, to each individual Christian, and to His Ministers, that is, His Men, who administer His holy and blessed Sacraments for your good. For you are His own. And by the ways and means of His Word, spoken in His stead and by His command, through the mouth of your Pastor, He daily and richly forgives all your sins and the sins of all believers. This is as valid and certain here on earth as it is in heaven. And where there is the forgiveness of sins, there is life and salvation.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
It is our practice each Sunday to bring before the Lord our God and Father those whom we love who are hurt or ill, who are homebound or recovering, those who are suffering in some way or another. This is not limited of course, to the gathered congregation at prayer. You do this in your private prayers as well. Such is not merely common in the Christian Church and life; but in fact marks the faithfulness of our Lord’s dear children.
And for those who are ill, those who are hurting, those who are sick and dying, those for whom we provide care, those under our protection - parents and grandparents, friends and neighbors, even children - our prayers exhibit two things: a deep and earnest desire for these to be freed from their illness and suffering, from their sorrow and pain. And also, a deep and abiding trust in the good and gracious will of the Lord our God who has loved us in Christ Jesus His Son our Lord. For all such prayers are tempered by the Third Petition of the Our Father: Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
The good and gracious will of God is indeed done even without our prayers. And sometimes, often times, His good and gracious will is contrary to the expectations of our flesh. It is most certainly always contrary to the thoughts of the world and the evil ravings of the devil. Such is exemplified in this Gospel lesson.
St Matthew records that Jesus came to His own city. Only it is not Nazareth. Nor is it Bethlehem. Rather His own city is Capernaum. The home of Simon Peter and his family. The base of operations for Matthew the tax collector. That Jesus calls it His own ought not be dismissed or overlooked. For our Lord Christ, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, descended from heaven and came unto His own, but His own received Him not. And only two chapters hence our Lord shall exclaim: And you Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For 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 (Mt 11:23-24).
Though it is laid up for destruction worse than Sodom, yet He has a remnant within her; even as Lot and his family resided in that wicked city. So take heart, dear ones, that our Lord deigns to call anyone or anything His own is a rich and profound blessing. For such does He call you. His own dear children. His own redeemed. His own ransomed. His own people, marked with His own Name, re-created for Himself. His own for whom His heart longs and His own upon whom His mercy is displayed.
And behold some people brought to Him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And when Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Be of courage, My child, your sins are forgiven.” Such is the absolute posture of faith. Not merely of the paralytic who could do nothing for himself; who was at the mercy of his friends, who took pity upon him. His life was indeed lived solely by dependence upon the charity and kindness, upon the compassion and care of others. But that Jesus beholds their faith - the faith of the friends!
This may be an exercise of His divine omniscience, but it need not be. For faith is not merely a private matter of the heart. It constantly and continually, without prodding, brings forth good works according to the will and Word of the Lord, even as St Paul exhorts the Ephesians, Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. In posture before the Lord , faith always receives. It is passive, as the paralytic on the mat. It is always looking to Jesus, bringing to Him our needs and our desires, our fears and anxieties, as the friends carry the one for whom they care, the one for whom they sacrifice. Faith expressed in such works is visible to behold. It does not simply reside in the heart, but is made known in the mouth and in the life.
And such faith that looks to Jesus as its Author and Perfecter, always and only desires one thing above all else: the forgiveness of sins. This is not to say that the wants and needs of the body are nothing or meaningless. Nor is it to imply that our Lord does not concern Himself with them. Our gracious God and Father cares for all your needs of body and soul, possessions and reputation. And out of His fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, He provides all that you need to support this body and life.
But that faith seeks above all the free and full forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ is to recognize that this is the good and gracious will of your Father in heaven. All else hinges on this. Where there is the forgiveness of sins there is life, true life, everlasting Life in Christ Jesus, our crucified, risen, and glorified Lord and Savior. Where there is the forgiveness of sins there is salvation, free and everlasting, rescue from all perils to body and soul, from sin, death, and the power of the devil. Such is the prerogative of the Lord your God. Such is His good and gracious will.
And thus the outrage and unbelief of the scribes who among themselves, accuse Jesus of blasphemy. For only God can forgive sins! This is true. Who scarcely believes that the Pastor forgives sins in the stead and by the command of Christ? Who scarcely believes, even among Lutherans, that my forgiveness is God’s forgiveness? Such is the nature of false doctrine and misbelief - its deprives you of your most precious treasures. As Dr Luther says, “If we truly knew what the [Absolution] is we should be willing to run more than a hundred miles to receive it” (Exhortation to Confession]. Not as the voice of a man, but as the very voice of God in heaven who has given such authority to men as the way and means by which He alone forgives the sins of repentant sinners.
But the scribes and unbelievers do not care for such a precious and noble gift! They blaspheme concerning this good and gracious will of God. But Jesus, seeing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your heart?” Once again, His perception need not be a use of His divine omniscience. For just as faith in the heart is seen and evidenced in the life and word. So is unbelief seen in action and primarily in rejection of the pure and beloved doctrine of the forgiveness of sins.
The Word confronts such unbelief and puts to them, Which is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Rise and walk?” Now is seems apparent that is is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven.” For one to say, “Rise and walk,” and the individual does not do so, it becomes obvious that that man is a fraud or a charlatan. Forgiveness is unseen. Miracles and faith healing are visible.
And they are attractive to the flesh! The scribes want a Messiah who will exert power by healing all disease, curing all illness, fixing all palsied limbs. And so does the unbelieving world! “If only the Church did what Jesus did, or what the Apostles did in Acts - miracles and healing - then I would believe; then it would be easier to be a Christian!” It might be true. But all we do, Pastors and people, the Christian Church, is stand around forgiving sins. And the world scoffs and blasphemes!
I am not convinced that it is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven.” For not only does such pronouncement bring scoffers and doubters, but it comes at a great and terrible price. Whether forgiving sins or healing the paralyzed, our Lord Jesus is restoring fallen creation. Only one is temporal and the other eternal. Limbs once paralyzed may become so again. The effects of age and disease, symptoms of a greater problem, linger on and grow and increase all the more as death draws near. The man took up his bed and went home. He would eventually return to that bed in his death and be buried. So too shall all of you. So too shall all of your loved ones for whom we pray and you pray. Even if they get better; it is only temporary.
But the forgiveness of sins is eternal. And its pronouncement came at at great price. Absolution is costly. Not that it costs you anything. But it cost the Son of Man, the Lord God of Abraham in the flesh, everything. In order to restore fallen creation, in order to heal paralyzed limbs, to raise the dead, and above all - in order to forgive sins - our Lord Jesus Christ must take those sins upon Himself, all of them, and die. He must come to His own, even though they reject Him and don’t want His sacrifice, and He must become their Sin in order to put it to death, in order to bring Life and Immortality to Light!
And such has He done for you! The GodMan, Jesus Christ, took your sin, made it His own, and bore the wrath and punishment of the Father on your behalf. In blessed exchange He has given you a new self, created after the very likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. This He has put on you in Holy Baptism, raising you from your death bed, giving you His eternal healing, and sending you to the Home and House of His Father and your Father in heaven.
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him. According to His good and gracious will He has given it you, His Church, that is, to each individual Christian, and to His Ministers, that is, His Men, who administer His holy and blessed Sacraments for your good. For you are His own. And by the ways and means of His Word, spoken in His stead and by His command, through the mouth of your Pastor, He daily and richly forgives all your sins and the sins of all believers. This is as valid and certain here on earth as it is in heaven. And where there is the forgiveness of sins, there is life and salvation.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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