"MEMORY ISSUES"
The Day of Pentecost (Confirmation)
June 4, 2017
Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church
Glenshaw, Pennsylvania
TEXT:
"The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you."
John 14:26 (ESV)
A couple of months ago, when we started talking about the confirmands' presentations for this morning's service, one of you (and don't worry, I don't remember who it was) asked me in a somewhat confrontational manner: "When you got confirmed, did you have to get up and give a speech in front of the whole congregation?" I answered, with a smile: "No, in my day they had us sit on folding chairs right in front of the Communion rail, facing the congregation, and the pastor, at random, asked us questions from the catechism. And nobody had any idea who was going to be asked what." Whoever it was that asked me that question readily agreed that maybe the way we do now it isn't so bad after all. Whether it's memorizing a portion of the catechism or trying to remember someone's name, we all have memory issues. Remembering things can be a challenge and, believe me, it becomes more of a challenge the older you get because, the longer you live, the more memories you have, and your brain can become quite crowded with all of those memories.
Today is not only Confirmation Sunday; it's also the Day of Pentecost, when we celebrate the Person and work of the Holy Spirit. He is the One who Jesus describes in today's sermon text as "the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name." It is this Spirit who helps us remember. He especially helps us to remember that we are sinners who have been redeemed from sin and death with the blood of Jesus and have been called to be the people of God in Jesus Christ through the Gospel, which He gives us in Word and Sacrament. As you have been taught, confirmation is not a Sacrament. It was not instituted by God but is rather a human custom. A goodcustom, to be sure, but nevertheless a human one. What is happening today as you are confirmed is that you are saying "Amen" to what God has done in your life through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. You are, in effect, saying: "Yes. This is who I am and I promise to do everything in my power to live up to who God says I am: His beloved child, "created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10). Today we will listen as Jesus tells us the ways in which the Holy Spirit helps us in this.
The Savior says of the Holy Spirit that "He will teach you all things." You have already learned a great deal about what it means to be a child of God--in your home, in Sunday School, in confirmation class. Who taught you? Ultimately it was not your parents or your Sunday School teachers or your pastor; it was the Holy Spirit Himself because what you have been taught is drawn from the Word of God, and wherever the Word is present, the Holy Spirit is present--"teaching, . . . reproving, . . . correcting, . . . and training [you] in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16). But that instruction, given in the Word of God, is not by any means finished. As long as you live in this world, you will continue to learn. You have to because both you and the world are constantly changing. Each day of your lives you will encounter new challenges to your faith and new opportunities to live the New Life in Christ that you have been given in your Baptism.
The Word of God never changes, no matter how much public opinion may change. It is the same Word that was given by God centuries ago but it continues to speak to every time and place and situation. No matter how the world tries to rewrite history and redefine what is right and wrong, the Holy Scriptures continue to proclaim the ancient and glorious truth that "the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). Even Christians with a photographic memory need to be in the Word throughout their lives so that they can hold fast to the teachings of Christ and be reminded constantly of the realities of human sin and God's redeeming grace in Christ. This is especially important in today's world, which has and continues to become increasingly godless and anti-Christian. The four of you have a lot of life ahead of you, which will be lived in a world that will constantly contradict your faith and tempt you to forsake it. The Word of God is your strength as you live in this world, holding firmly to "the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3).
The Spirit of God, working through the Word, preserves and strengthens your faith by " bring[ing] to your remembrance all that [Jesus has] said to you." What Jesus has said to us and done for us is the Gospel, and it is the Gospel that forgives us when we sin, strengthens us when we are weak, protects us when we are tempted, and encourages us when we are down, That Gospel is given to us in Word and Sacrament, which is why it is important that, no matter how much we have learned and no matter how old we get, we continue to hear, read, and study the Word, draw on the power of our Baptism, and receive the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. In these means of grace the Holy Spirit reminds us of everything that Jesus has done for us to make us God's children so that we may continue as God's children in the midst of all of the obstacles that "the devil, the world, and our sinful nature" (Small Catechism, explanation of the Sixth Petition of the Lord's Prayer) place before us.
The Spirit who inspired the Word is present in that Word and works through it. As I said before, the unchanging Word of God speaks to every generation and every situation in this world of constant change. The issues that confront us today in the public square and in our individual lives may have been unknown to the human authors of the Scriptures but the Spirit of God (who is the real Author of God's Word) knows all things. The teachings of the Scriptures address and can be applied to every dilemma that any of us will ever face in life. As we live in this world of temptation and sin, our slain and risen Savior is with us in the power of His Spirit to guide and direct, to forgive and restore, to comfort and encourage, to heal and strengthen.
This world can be a very lonely and frightening place for the Christian who is determined to remain faithful to his or her Savior. This is especially true for young people like you who are surrounded by countless evil influences through which the devil never ceases to try to lure you away from your Savior and Shepherd--the One who lived, suffered and died, and rose again for you. It is not by any means easy to remain faithful. But all is not lost. The Lord's promise is sure--the promise that He has made to all of us and that He makes once again today, especially to the four of you: "I have said these things to you," He promises, "that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
Amen.
May the God who has so graciously poured out His Holy Spirit upon His Church cause you to use the power of that Spirit in the service of your Savior. To this end may He preserve you in His grace and bring your faith to completion in heaven. He who calls you is faithful, and He will do it. Amen.