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| By Norma A. Boeckler |
The Fifth Sunday after Easter - Rogate 2019
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
The Hymn # 651 Be Still My Soul
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #454 Prayer Is the Soul's Sincere Desire
God Provides the Faith To Ask
The Communion Hymn # 207 Like the Golden Sun
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #457 What a Friend We Have in Jesus
- Ascension Day Holy Communion - Thursday, 7 PM
- Prayers for Baby Andrea, upcoming surgery
- Those in cancer and post-surgical treatment
- Flood victims
- Thanksgiving for Veterans who gave their lives for our country.
KJV James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. 26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. 27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
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| By Norma A. Boeckler |
KJV John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. 24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. 25 These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father. 26 At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: 27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God. 28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. 29 His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. 30 Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.
Fifth Sunday After Easter
Lord God, heavenly Father, who through Thy Son didst promise us that whatsoever we ask in His name Thou wilt give us: We beseech Thee, keep us in Thy word, and grant us Thy Holy Spirit, that He may govern us according to Thy will; protect us from the power of the devil, from false doctrine and worship; also defend our lives against all danger; grant us Thy blessing and peace, that we may in all things perceive Thy merciful help, and both now and forever praise and glorify Thee as our gracious Father, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
Background for the Sermon - Luther's Outline
These points are verbatim from this sermon of Luther.
http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/2019/05/luthers-sermon-on-prayer.html
1. First we note that in order for a prayer to be really right and to be heard five things are required. The first is, that we have from God his promise or his permission to speak to him, and that we remember the same before we pray and remind God of it, thereby encouraging ourselves to pray in a calm and confident frame of mind.
2. In the second place, it is necessary that we never doubt the pledge and promise of the true and faithful God. For even to this end did God pledge himself to hear, yea, commanded us to pray, in order that we may always have a sure and firm faith that we will be heard; as Jesus says in Matthew 21:22: “All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.”
3. In the third place, if one prays doubting that God will hear him, and only offers his prayers as a venture, whether it be granted or not granted, he is guilty of two wicked deeds. The first is, that he, himself, makes his prayer unavailing and he labors in vain. For Jesus says: “Whoever will ask of God, let him ask in faith..."
5. In the fourth place, some say: Yes, I would gladly trust that my prayer would be heard, if I were only worthy and prayed aright. My answer is: If you do not pray until you know and experience that you are fit, then you will never need to pray.
7. In the fifth place, one should so act in this confidence of prayer as not to limit God and specify the day or place, nor designate the way or measure of the prayer’s fulfillment; but leave all to his own will, wisdom and almighty power. [end of verbatim Luther quotation]
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| The early Christians considered dying for the faith a great honor. Stephen is memorialized in the New Testament - the crown of life. Europeans said, "No cross, no crown." |
God Provides the Faith To Ask
KJV John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.
This is something to remember always - The Scriptures are full of exhortations to pray to God for all needs, but these passages always include the Promises of God, which cause and increase our faith so that we do pray to Him for every need.
Prayer is often portrayed as a work and even taught as a sacrament, as if grace comes to us only if we ask. In fact, many make prayer pivotal in the worst sense, ignoring that grace comes through the Word.
In this address to the disciples and us, Jesus first speaks of praying, and also promises - "Whatever you ask in My Name, He will give it to you."
So this shows us the divine activity in prayer, not only in urging prayer and motivating prayer through God's grace, but also in answering prayer.
The modernists are proud of themselves for talking about Christianity from the perspective of man, which really comes from traditional humanism - Man is the measure of all things. (Modern humanism is just another name for atheist, very much an activist, take people to court atheism. One of their stars was a WELS-LCMS pastor and proud of it.)
When we start from man's point of view, we necessarily ignore God's revelation. That is the origin of people claiming God will only give according to man's demands, according to man's schedule, etc. Church Growth people love Cho and Schuller for that - and both frauds fell from the pinnacle of fame.
There are no conditions in Jesus' statement - "whatsoever you ask in My Name" - when we follow exactly what He taught and ignore the modern twists and turn.
This is part of the farewell sermon, so it has special importance for this Gospel and for the Christian Church. This should be taken as pure truth and a guide for all prayer.\\
24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
As Luther observed once, John's Gospel (symbolized by an eagle) is like an eagle in circling a point and going higher and higher on that point, until we see many aspects of that singular truth. It is done in such a way that we cannot miss the main points and can go back to them and continue to learn. John 6 - I AM the Bread of Life - is a good example of this.
John 6 32 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.33 For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
Although Jesus will be gone visibly from them, He will not be absent. In the midst of His departure He comforted them with the fact of God answering prayers in the Name of Jesus.
Not invoking the Name of Jesus is the same as confessing no faith in Him. The only proper prayer ends in the Name of Jesus, because He is the agent of that request. We are not worthy and should not even think of worthiness, because the worthiness comes from Him, and it is honored by God the Father. That is why we speak of the righteous of faith, not works.
Monergism - God working
I shy away from terms but this is an important one in the face of the goofballs always measuring and "teaching" from man's point of view. They fly at everyone who doubts their speculations, their little effeminate fists going like windmills in a storm.Monergism simply means that God does everything, so that concept is resisted by the doubters and man-pleasers. Forgiveness comes only through faith, and God creates faith through the Gospel Promises being preached and taught. The Scriptures urge us to pray, and the same Word of God increases our faith in God listening to those prayers, answering them. Good works come from faith in Christ, so God's grace works in forgiveness and in the fruit of faith - good works.
A little girl brought in red raspberries, though the canes were only blooming now. I asked her to show me where they came from. They were big, fat wild strawberries, not little red BBs I associate with wild strawberries. In fact, birds plant them and they spread like weeds, looking like rubies shining in the sun. They are the result of long, steady rains and brilliant sunlight. So good works come from the energy of the gracious Word - not from man. Prayer is urged and the efficacy of the gracious Word moves us to pray, trusting in God's wisdom and mercy.
...that your joy may be full.
Rather than commanding that God may be appeased, the reason is given - "that your joy may be full." That is, when we pray, over a long period of time, we see many prayers answered. Some are for our own needs, addressing our fears and anxieties and genuine troubles.
Other prayers are offered for people we may have never met, but also for friends, neighbors, church members, leaders of the country, leaders of church bodies. Over time we also see how those prayers are answered, which gives us confidence to ask anything, as God has urged us, as Jesus has commended for our guidance.
In looking back we can see how God has provided for us, protected us, and given us unspeakable joys. The same is true for those who received those remedies for which we asked God - for help in healing, for patience in suffering, for a better way to live, for healthy children, for the spread of the Gospel.
25 These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father.
The mission of the Savior was so great, so pivotal for mankind, that Jesus needed to teach His disciples for three years before the final event unfolded. Many sayings were for the future preaching of the Gospel - Isaiah 53 serving as the Old Testament Gospel. Although they knew this chapter, they had to experience it in action as Jesus fulfilled every verse, with extensive explanations given in Psalm 22 as well.
I see this verse as predicting that Jesus would show the Father plainly to the disciples by His sacrificial death, resurrection, and ascension. Only then would they see and experience the grace of God the Father and His power over all life, all of our so-called realities.
So now we look back at these verses and realize they are no longer proverbs, puzzles, enigmatic sayings. They are clearly explained by the Scriptures, if only we spend some time with them.
26 At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: 27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.
I have seen God accomplish so much with such speed that I never stop to wonder IF He can do it. Nor do I wonder WHEN He will do it. The rewards are enormous to see those things take place over time or immediately, beyond what we can even imagine.
Here is a great motivating statement from Jesus. He is not going to pray for us, because the Father loves us for loving the Son and believing He was sent by the Father.
There is an wall that cannot be breached between this faith so plainly described and the clever doubts of so many:
- They attack the Scriptures in general - just another book!
- They attack the Gospel of John, a very late philosophical book!
- They will believe in God when He obeys certain orders they have issued for Him to obey!
It is this doubt, which creeps in on people, that keeps us from praying. The more we dwell on God's Word being direct, plain revelation to us, the more we see how this is the same as God speaking directly to us - because He is.
These words from Jesus could not be any simpler than they are. What is emphasized here?
- Loving Jesus.
- Believing in His mission.
Notice how quickly that can be short-circuited. If someone has no knowledge of the cross (typical vicars), he may resent Jesus as soon as the cross is laid on their shoulders. That is because everyone loves a seminary student until he is ordained. Sometimes the vicar has no knowledge of the cross because his family connections protect him from his errors.
Loving Jesus will take a backseat if the ministry is seen as a ticket to comfort and ease, which it can be on the wrong highway, the wrong endpoint.
Believing in His mission. I get regular news releases from the Illinois ELCA seminary. Their concerns are either involving gender-bending or opposing the government on illegal activities. God neve comes up, so Jesus' mission was to create a web of social activists to bring on the Kingdom of God (aka workers' paradise). This was the cause of the Brotherhood of the Kingdom (interesting PhD disseration) and its results, the Communist Federal Council of Churches and the related World Council of Churches.
The radical Left in the visible church bodies are disgusted by the atoning death of Christ and dubious about His resurrection. Therefore, they do not believe He was sent but have their own ideas.
28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
These are beautiful, clear statements. One is tempted to pass them by because they are so plain - no puzzles to puzzle us.
Do you see the Virgin Birth in this passage? I do. How did He come into the world? He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. After His resurrection He returned to the Father.
If we do not stop and marvel at these words, we miss the power in them. The Holy Spirit is always teaching us in the Word. You doubt? You are anxious? God did all this because of His love of a world that did not show much love to His Son. Yet, because of His grace, He carried out His mission to fulfill the Messianic Promises of the Old Testament and establish His relationship to us through His Son.
29 His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. 30 Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.
This strengthened His disciples, as it should strengthen us and open the Scriptures to us. The disciples saw the very worst and were given God's favor in seeing Jesus risen from the dead. That mostly took away their worldly anxieties and doubts. After being sent, in John's Gospel, they went back to fishing. "Have to eat," as Peter would have said.
The resurrection was emphasized again with Jesus appearing on shore and generating a miraculous catch reunion event. That showed Peter "It is the Lord." Oh how they labored to get that miraculous catch ashore. And when they did, Jesus already had dinner ready. The message is "You trusted in yourselves with the fish. I am the Creating Word, the Savior. Trust in Me."
Thus the Spirit is always convicting us of sin, because our faith is weak and wavering. God strengthens that faith, again and again, showing us His grace and power, in the past and our present.
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| By Norma A. Boeckler Ascension Day, May 30th, Holy Communion service, 7 PM. |
