The Twenty-Fourth Sunday after Trinity, 2021
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
Oh, come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker.
For He is our God: and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
Psalm. Oh, come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the Rock of our salvation.
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
Stir up, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the wills of Thy
faithful people that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works,
may of Thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord,
who liveth, etc.
Thou hast delivered my soul from death: mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.
V. I love the Lord: because He hath heard my voice and my supplication. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. With Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see light. Hallelujah!
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
Defeating Satan with the Word
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 #199 Jesus Christ Is Risen Today
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 #199 Jesus Christ Is Risen Today
In Our Prayers
Pastor Jim Shrader - in treatment.
Randy Anderson has a small cyst on his lung.
Anita Engleman just had a birthday.
Those being mandated to receive the Covid shots - more than you can imagine.
Colossians 1`:9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; 12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
Matthew 9:18 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live. 19 And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples. 20 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: 21 For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. 22 But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour. 23 And when Jesus came into the ruler's house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, 24 He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. 25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose. 26 And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.
Defeating Satan with the Word
Introduction
We live in strange times, when most people trust every word but the Word of God. Nothing is more powerful, because the Spirit works with the Word at all times. Nothing else comes close to that power, so it is Satan's design to make everyone distrust that power and question whether that can ever be true.
What Luther taught from the Scriptures is the divine efficacy of the Word. If Satan is so powerful and has so many tricks to play, the Word is 100,000 times more powerful. That is in the Large Catechism, Book of Concord, and ELCA-WELS-ELS-LCMS supposed agree completely with that confession of faith.
What we do not know or have forgotten or have mistrusted, that very thing - the Word - is left unused when given to us for our use, benefit, and above all - protection.
Matthew 9:18 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.
This is a miracle taught in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, each having slightly different but not contradictory details. "A certain ruler of the synagogue" is Jairus, and we can be sure that he remained a believer after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Here he casts all his worries on His faith in the Savior. His daughter was at the point of death and the father is thinking of her healing, whether almost dead or already gone. Jairus confessed his complete faith in Jesus. And why not? What is more powerful than the divine touch? The Creator healing His creature.
We should always remember the children's confession when asked - "How could Jesus do this? Walk on water, heal the sick, raise the dead, turn water into wine?" Children always say, "He is God. God can do anything." How much that is eroded by the criticism, sarcasm, doubt, and foolish humor of today! That should be the first thing we think of, not the last.
19 And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples. 20 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:
This woman's disease caused endless discomfort, as the other evangelists point out. It also made her unclean in Jewish law and custom. The hem, according to Lenski, was a tassel on the back of the religious garment Jesus wore. Pharisees loved to have big showy tassels that pointed out their high station in life, much like the professors with fake doctorates (DMin) who insist on being called Doctor and wear the stripes and regalia associated with publishing actual research.
This ordeal plagued the woman for 12 years, and that is a terrible length of time to suffer. As the evangelists point out, she wasted a lot of money on medicine and only grew worse from the treatments. Medicine has not changed much.
21 For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. 22 But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.
Her trust in Jesus was so great that she only needed to touch His garment to enjoy His divine healing. We can find all kinds of similar tokens today, though they are not connected with Jesus, but show trust in many other things without any power at all.
An early church father pointed out - "If a woman could trust the edge of Jesus' garment, how much more effective is the Body and Blood of our Savior?"
God's Promises, chiefly forgiveness, but many other blessings as well, are connected directly with Holy Communion.
We also see in this miracle an example of Jesus' power being available simply because He is passing through an area. That is no different from the Gospel preached and taught as it moves through an area, via a fixed church location or a broadcast. The true Gospel is not simply about Jesus Christ - it is the Word Incarnate, the Two Natures united in Christ. The pastor at the sickbed is just as powerful as the risen Lord if he brings the Gospel, teaches faith in Jesus Christ.
Faith is access to the grace of Christ and should never be downplayed, belittled, or mocked. That is why children, who seem to be all faith, are so joyful. They do not have the adult-installed blockages and detours.
23 And when Jesus came into the ruler's house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, 24 He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.
As we know from experience, there is seldom a moment of dramatic death for an individual, but a series of steps toward the reality. The official mourners are part of many cultures. They make a racket even if they do not know the person. This was an influential person, so the mourners would have been especially dramatic, and they would have felt sorrow for the young girl.
25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose. 26 And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.
The maid arose from death - and the story went out everywhere, promoting faith in Jesus Christ. Romans 10 - faith comes from the the rumor, the report, the hearing of the Gospel. People cannot keep quiet when they know someone has come alive through Jesus Christ,
The Word of the miracle, by itself generates faith because the Word is Christ and has the power of the Holy Spirit to plant and nurture faith.
Believers Beat Down the Demonic
Satan works in a thousand ways to take us away from the Savior and dwell on the dungeons below. Luther has a good story about a religious leader starting a ceremony to keep a Satanic figure away. Then he says, "What is he? A nothing. I do need a ceremony. Begone and don't come back." And the plaguing figure disappeared.
The military has a colorful figure which I won't use, but it means - stop dwelling on and obsessing about evil, defeat, and all the mistakes of past and present.
There are paid workers who are doing things, such as noise-making at odd times, just to wear down and un-nerve people.
I recall sightings of scary clowns in the recent past, and there was a run of photos of giant clowns scaring children. It only took a few reports and/or photos to get the news running about these events.
Curiosity draws people into such pagan, Satanic games as Dungeons and Dragons. One of my students was good looking with a beautiful girlfriend, but he was mixed up. One day in class he was dressed normally and alert. Another day he had black lipstick, other makeup, and chains around his neck. I walked up to that group in the computer lab and said to him, "Get rid of these losers." They laughed and sneered at me. As a group they were enticing me and drawing him away from what is healthy and normal.
If Satan has a thousand arts to ruin us, God has 100,000 arts to defeat him. The company of normal, believing people is a good weapon. The Bible is 100% the Word of God, always a defensive shield and powerful weapon against unFaith.
