Mid-Week Lenten Vespers, March 6, 2013
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
The Psalmody Psalm p. 128
The Lection The
Passion History
The Sermon Hymn #249 Isaiah Mighty Seer 2.72
The Sermon
– Isaiah’s Preaching of the Gospel
The Prayers
The Lord’s Prayer
The Collect for Grace p. 45
The Hymn # 558 All Praise 2:9
KJV Isaiah 53:1 Who hath
believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? 2 For he
shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground:
he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no
beauty that we should desire him.
3 He is despised and
rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it
were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him
stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our
transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of
our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have
gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on
him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he
opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep
before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison
and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out
of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death;
because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the LORD
to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul
an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days,
and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the
travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my
righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide
him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the
strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered
with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for
the transgressors.
Isaiah’s Preaching of the Gospel
KJV Isaiah 53:1 Who hath
believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
This verse is a clear
representation of the Gospel in a few words. This means we have both the
proclamation of the truth and faith in that preaching.
The “report” as translated
in Romans 10, in citing Isaiah 53, is a combination of preaching and hearing.
The Jackson Living KJV
translates Romans 10:16 as
Who has believed
the Word which is heard?
Isaiah 53 unfolds and Romans
10 completes it. The Passion of Christ was revealed centuries before, and Paul
teaches – this atonement is preached and heard, so that all who believe in the
Gospel are forgiven and saved. Their sins are washed away, removed forever, and
this forgiveness continues as along as they abide in the True Vine (John 15)
through the Means of Grace.
This righteousness of faith
(in the words of Paul, Romans 10, is the result of proclaiming the atoning death
of the Suffering Servant, from Isaiah 53.
KJV Romans 10:6 But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on
this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to
bring Christ down from above:)
There is the righteousness
of the Law or the righteousness of faith. One opposes or displaces the other.
If someone rejects the righteousness that comes from believing the Gospel, he
lives under the righteousness of the Law.
2 For he shall grow up
before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no
form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that
we should desire him.
This verse only makes sense
in light of the ministry of Christ, a prefiguring of the crucified Messiah.
This is so clear that Isaiah 53 has been taught successfully in the conversions
of Jews to the Gospel, since the chapter does everything except name Jesus as
the topic of the passage.
So it is no surprise that
Paul, the Jewish Pharisee who lived the righteousness of the Law, persecuting
faith, found Isaiah 53 so harmonious with his message to the Romans. This was
not simply the choice of Paul, but the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, showing
how the Old Testament and the New Testament are one unified truth.
3 He is despised and
rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it
were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him
stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our
transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of
our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Rationalists do not like
this chapter, but believers find great comfort in it. These two verses describe
the suffering of the Messiah, but it is suffering for a reason. Apart from the
Gospel, the idea of the Servant suffering for others makes no sense. This falls
outside of the ancient concept of the warrior king.
He has borne our griefs and
carried our sorrows…
This is reflected in the
atonement passages of 1 Corinthians, that Jesus took our sin upon Him so that
we might receive His righteousness in faith.
This chapter is antiphonal
in this sense – the facts are reported followed by the divinely-planned reason
why they happened.
These events happened
because…
- He was wounded for our transgressions.
- He was bruised for our iniquities.
- The chastisement of our peace was upon Him.
- And with His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have
gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on
him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he
opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep
before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
Old Testament poetry
beautifully explains one verse or one part of a verse with another. The same
thought is repeated in different words, so we can understand from both parts.
One example – The Lord is my Shepherd, which
explains I shall not want.
This section gives us a
picture of the Lamb who is sacrificed for our sins, yet we are the sheep. He is
both Lamb and Good Shepherd, just as He is both victim and priest. (Hebrews is
especially eloquent about Jesus as the High Priest.)
8 He was taken from prison
and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out
of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death;
because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
This section says so much
about the death and resurrection of Christ. This reveals His sinless nature,
His divinity, and also the grave where He was placed. He died as a criminal but
was buried in a new grave from a rich man, one never used before. (Lazarus
prefigured this rising from the dead, showing how the Word could raise the
dead.)
12 Therefore will I
divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with
the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered
with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for
the transgressors.
The unity of the Scriptures
can be seen in how this passage harmonizes with Christ teaching about the
stronger man who takes over the possessions of the strong man (Satan) and takes
away his spoils, sharing them.
The earth no longer belongs
to Satan, who still rules the best he can until the end. Christ is the victor
and calls all into His Kingdom by His Word. He has won the victory, which is
ours by faith.
Quotations
"Other
writings, however, of ancient or modern teachers, whatever name they bear, must
not be regarded as equal to the Holy Scriptures, but all of them together be
subjected to them, and should not be received otherwise or further than as
witnesses, [which are to show] in what manner after the time of the apostles,
and at what places, this [pure] doctrine of the prophets and apostles was
preserved."
Formula of Concord, Epitome, Part I,
2, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia
Publishing House, 1921, p. 777. Tappert, p.
465.
"We believe,
teach, and confess that the sole rule and standard according to which all
dogmas together with [all] teachers should be estmated and judged are the
prophetic and apostolic Scriptures of the Old and the New Testament alone, as
it is written in Psalm 119:105: 'Thy
Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.' And St. Paul: 'Though an angel from heaven preach any
other gospel unto you, let him be accursed,' Galatians 1:8." Formula of Concord, Epitome, Part I,
1, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia
Publishing House, 1921, p. 777. Tappert, p. 464. Psalm 119:105; Galatians
1:8.
"Therefore,
before the conversion of man there are only two efficient causes, namely, the
Holy Ghost and the Word of God, as the instrument of the Holy Ghost, by which
He works conversion. This
Word man is [indeed] to hear; however, it is not by his own powers, but only
through the grace and working of the Holy Ghost that he can yield faith to it
and accept it." Formula of Concord, Epitome, II, Of the Free Will, #19,
Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia
Publishing House, 1921, p. 791. Tappert, p. 472.
"This power
{the Keys} is exercised only by teaching or preaching the Gospel and
administering the Sacraments, according to their calling, either to many or to
individuals. For thereby
are granted, not bodily, but eternal things, as eternal righteousness, the Holy
Ghost, eternal life. These
things cannot come but by the ministry of the Word and the Sacraments, as Paul
says, Romans 1:16: The
Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. Therefore, since the power of the
Church grants eternal things, and is exercised only by the ministry of the
Word, it does not interfere with civil government; no more than the art of
singing interferes with civil government."
Augsburg Confession, Article XXVIII,
#8, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia
Publishing House, 1921, p. 85. Tappert, p. 82. Romans
1:16
"For this
reason we shall now relate, furthermore, from God's Word how man is converted
to God, how and through what means [namely, through the oral Word and the holy
Sacraments] the Holy Ghost wants to be efficacious in us, and to work and
bestow in our hearts true repentance, faith, and new spiritual power and
ability for good, and how we should conduct ourselves towards these means, and
[how we should] use them."
Solid Declaration, Article II, Free
Will, 48, Formula of Concord, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p.
901. Tappert, p.
530.
"Therefore God,
out of His immense goodness and mercy, has His divine eternal Law and His
wonderful plan concerning our redemption, namely, the holy, alone‑saving Gospel
of His eternal Son, our only Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, publicly
preached; and by this [preaching] collects an eternal Church for Himself from
the human race, and works in the hearts of men true repentance and knowledge of
sins, and true faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ. And by this means, and in no other
way, namely, through His holy Word, when men hear it preached or read it, and
the holy Sacraments when they are used according to His Word, God desires to
call men to eternal salvation, draw them to Himself, and convert, regenerate,
and sanctify them. 1
Corinthians 1:21: 'For
after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.' Acts 10:5‑6..."
Solid Declaration, Article II, Free
Will, #50, Formula of Concord, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p.
901. Tappert, p. 530f. 1 Corinthians 1:21; Acts 10:5‑6.
"Now, although
both, the planting and watering of the preacher, and the running and willing of
the hearer, would be in vain, and no conversion would follow it if the power
and efficacy of the Holy Ghost were not added thereto, who enlightens and
converts the hearts through the Word preached and heard, so that men believe
this Word and assent thereto, still, neither preacher nor hearer is to doubt
this grace and efficacy of the Holy Ghost, but should be certain that when the
Word of God is preached purely and truly, according to the command and will of
God, and men listen attentively and earnestly and meditate upon it, God is
certainly present with His grace, and grants, as has been said, what otherwise
man can neither accept nor give from his own powers."
Solid Declaration,
Article II, Free Will, 55‑56, Formula of Concord, Concordia Triglotta, St.
Louis: Concordia Publishing
House, 1921, p. 903. Tappert, p.
531f.
"Is the Lord's
Supper the place to display my toleration, my Christian sympathy, or my
fellowship with another Christian, when that is the very point in which most of
all we differ; and in which the difference means for me everything‑‑means for
me, the reception of the Savior's atonement? Is this the point to be selected for
the display of Christian union, when in fact it is the very point in which
Christian union does not exist?"
Theodore E. Schmauk and C. Theodore
Benze, The Confessional Principle and the Confessions, as Embodying the
Evangelical Confession of the Christian Church, Philadelphia: 1911, p.
905f.
"Another defect
of Reformed preaching is its contempt for the Means of Grace. They will tell you that the Holy
Spirit needs no vehicle, neither ox‑cart nor aeroplane, to enter the heart of
man; and by this rationalistic argument they think to have done away with the
Means of Grace. But notice
how they set about immediately to construct their own Means of Grace. Luther told them in his day:'If the
Holy Spirit needs no vehicle, no preaching, then why are you here? And why are you so earnest in
spreading your errors? It
seems that what you really meant to say was that the Holy Spirit does not need
true prophets, but He is very much in need of false prophets.' If the Holy
Spirit needs no Means of Grace, who do these Reformed churches undertake their
campaigns of revivalism?"
Martin S. Sommer, Concordia Pulpit for
1932, Martin S. Sommer, St. Louis: Concordia
Publishing House, 1931, p. iv.
"Transubstantiation
is also one of the pillars that support the papalist kingdom...Rather, it is
that they may retain and establish the sacrifice of the Mass, reservation,
carrying about, adoration of the bread, and all the things which, outside of
the divinely instituted use, have been joined to these things‑‑for this reason
they fight so persistently about transubstantiation."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
253.
"For Scripture
never calls either Baptism or the Lord's Supper mysteries or sacraments. Therefore this is an unwritten
(agraphos) appellation."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
29.
"They imagine
that by means of these actions, motions, gestures, and ceremonies, with certain
words added about sacrifice, oblation, and victim, they are sacrificing and
offering the body and blood of Christ, yes, Christ, the Son of God Himself,
anew to God the Father through such a theatrical representation (which is
either a comedy or a tragedy) of Christ's passion."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
446.
"To institute a
form of worship beside and without the Word of God, and indeed one to which is
ascribed propitiation for sins, appeasement of the wrath of God, is a vain
thing; it cannot please God; yes, it is idolatry. For 'in vain they worship Me with
doctrines and commandments of men.' Likewise:
'Without faith it is impossible that a thing should please God.' Faith, however, 'comes by hearing, and
hearing by the revealed Word of God.'"
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
493.
"That it lacks
true, firm, and solid grounds in Scripture is, however, not the only thing we
criticize in the papalist Mass; what we complain about most of all is that it
is an abomination, conflicting with the doctrine of the Word, the sacraments,
and faith‑‑yes, that it is full of abuse against the unique sacrifice of Christ
and against His perpetual priesthood, as this has been demonstrated at length
by the men on our side in fair and honest writings."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
493.
"The papalist
Mass, as we have described it in the beginning, militates against the one
propitiatory sacrifice of Christ in many ways and is an affront to it. For there is only one propitiatory
sacrifice that expiates and renders satisfaction for sins‑‑the offering of
Christ made on the cross (Hebrews 7:27; 9:12, 26; 10:12)."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
494.
"The papalist
Mass, as we have described it in the beginning, militates against the one
propitiatory sacrifice of Christ in many ways and is an affront to it. For there is only one propitiatory
sacrifice that expiates and renders satisfaction for sins‑‑the offering of
Christ made on the cross (Hebrews 7:27; 9:12, 26; 10:12)."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
494.
"In addition
there is this perversion, that whereas Christ instituted the use of His Supper
for all who receive it, who take, eat, and drink, the papalist Mass transfers
the use and benefit of the celebration of the Lord's Supper in our time to the
onlookers, who do not communicate, yes, to those who are absent, and even to
the dead."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
498.
"In addition
there is this perversion, that whereas Christ instituted the use of His Supper
for all who receive it, who take, eat, and drink, the papalist Mass transfers
the use and benefit of the celebration of the Lord's Supper in our time to the
onlookers, who do not communicate, yes, to those who are absent, and even to
the dead."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
498.
"If anyone says
that the canon of the Mass contains errors and should therefore be abrogated,
let him be anathema." [Chapter
IV, Canon VI] Chemnitz: "The
power, yes, the substance and as it were the soul of the papalist sacrifice is
the canon of the Mass. Therefore
they labor much more for its retention than about the canon of Scripture
itself, which they are not afraid to corrupt by mixing in other, noncanonical
books."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the
Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986,
II, p.
508.
