“THE WITNESSES” - Text:John 15:26, 27 (ESV)

“THE WITNESSES”

            The Day of Pentecost

May 20, 2018

Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church

Glenshaw, Pennsylvania

TEXT:

“When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness about Me.  And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”

John 15:26, 27 (ESV)

            Many have said that the message that we, the Church of Jesus Christ, proclaim in the world is a message of the past--and to a certain extent they are correct.  Twenty centuries have come and gone since Jesus lived and died and rose again.  The message that we seek to share with our unbelieving world, based on what has happened in the past, is primarily not one of the Law, but one of the Gospel.  Telling people what is right and what is wrong is important, to be sure, but that is not the main message that we have to offer.  If that were it, then the only message that the world would receive from us is that all people are doomed to hell because, if the truth be told, nobody does what is right and avoids what is wrong.  And, as the Word of God clearly asserts:  “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).  But that is only preparatory to the real message that we proclaim, which is found in the rest of that verse: “but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).  This is certainly in keeping with what Jesus Himself said:  “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:17).

            Since the events on which our message is based lie in the past (the far distant past, as a matter of fact), it’s only natural that these events must be established by the testimony of witnesses.  When we tell others about the facts and the message of the Gospel of Christ, that is commonly referred to as “witnessing.”  But are we really witnesses?  I'm sixty-four years old--maybe old by some standards, but hardly old enough to have actually observed what Jesus did for me and for all sinners.  Some of you are older than I am, but none of you are old enough to have actually been there when the Savior accomplished our redemption.  Some have made the observation that we are not really witnessing when we tell others about Christ; we are confessing our faith--the faith that the Holy Spirit has created in our hearts through the testimony of those who were witnesses: those who walked and talked with Jesus--who saw what He did and heard what He said.  As we listen to what Jesus says in the text before us this morning, we consider both the visible witnesses and the ultimate Witness of the mighty acts of God that He accomplished through His Son.

            The visible witnesses are, first of all, the apostles of the Lord who knew Him intimately and who told and wrote about what they had witnessed.  When Jesus says in the text:  “You also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning,” He is not talking about you and me but about those who literally were “with [Him] from the beginning.”  John the evangelist in particular identifies himself as one of these witnesses.  Speaking on behalf of all of the apostles, he writes:  “That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you” (John 20:31).  Those who saw Jesus live and die and rise again have borne witness concerning what they saw and heard.

            The Gospel--the Good News about Jesus that these apostles proclaimed--is the visible and audible witness that has informed us about who Jesus is and what He has done for lost sinners like us.  When I say “visible and audible,” I am talking about what we Lutherans have traditionally called the means of grace--the Word and the Sacraments.  These means “bear witness about” Jesus.  They actually do a lot more than that.  Through them the Spirit of God calls spiritually dead sinners to New Life in Christ and causes them to grow in faith.  The Gospel, as it is proclaimed in the Word and acted out in the Sacraments, actually gives what it proclaims: the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation--all made possible because of the perfect merits of Jesus Christ.  Every time we hear God’s Word of grace, whether it be in our Bible reading or in a sermon or in a Gospel tract, the Spirit is witnessing to us.  Every time we recall our Baptism or receive Christ’s body and blood in the Lord’s Supper, the Spirit is witnessing to us.  And not only witnessing, but actually giving us the gifts promised in the Gospel.

            Of course, behind all of these witnesses and the means of grace is the ultimate Witness--the real Witness.  This is the Holy Spirit Himself--the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity--the One whose Person and work we celebrate today on this feast of Pentecost.  In the text Jesus calls Him “the Helper.”  That is an understatement because He does more than just help us confess our faith; it is He who actually does it, using us.  It is the Spirit of God within us who “bear[s] witness about” Jesus, thereby creating faith in our hearts.  It is that faith that we confess when we tell others who Jesus is and what He has done for sinners--in particular what He has done for us and in us and through us.  The words that we speak and the lives that we live are the evidence that the Holy Spirit lives in us and proclaims the Gospel of Christ through us in word and action.

            Jesus also identifies this “Helper” as “the Spirit of Truth.”  In our postmodern world the idea of truth is a foreign concept to many.  A lot of people don’t believe in absolute truth anymore. They believe that everything is relative.  I’m reminded of a couple of lines attributed to Pontius Pilate in “Jesus Christ Superstar,” the rock opera of almost fifty years ago.  In response to Jesus’ statement that He came to bear witness to the truth, Pilate asks rhetorically:

                                                            “But what is truth?  Is truth unchanging law?

                                                            We both have truths.  Are mine the same as Yours?”

You see, people in our world today think that they can determine what is true for them, or that if the majority of people believe something to be true, that makes it so.  But “the Spirit of Truth” that Jesus “send[s] to [us] from the Father” bears witness to Absolute Truth, particularly to the only Truth that really matters: the Truth that is Jesus Himself, crucified and raised for us and for our salvation.

            On this Day of Pentecost we give thanks for “the Spirit of Truth” who “bears witness about” our Savior Jesus Christ through the testimony of those who had "been with [Him] from the beginning”--those who saw Him die and then saw Him alive again.  That Spirit, who has called us to faith and discipleship through Word and Sacrament, also motivates and strengthens us to confess our faith so that our confession of faith may be His way of “bear[ing] witness about” Jesus even today, bringing about the salvation of others for whom the Savior bled and died, so that they too “may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing [they] may have life in His name” (John 20:31).

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.

"The Thirteenth Apostle" - Text: Acts 1:26 (ESV)

 “THE THIRTEENTH APOSTLE”

The Seventh Sunday of Easter (Mothers' Day)

May 13, 2018

Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church

Glenshaw, Pennsylvania

TEXT:

They cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. 

Acts 1:26 (ESV) 

            It's been said that everyone needs to be needed, and I sincerely believe that that is true.  Perhaps on Mothers' Day especially the moms among us know how rewarding it can be to be needed.  I’ve seen evidence of the need to be needed so many times and have even experienced that feeling myself.  Whenever a pastor receives a call, for example, he is flattered, whether it's an attractive call or not.  There is a certain sense of affirmation that he gets from knowing that somebody wants him.  But when he investigates and gets the whole story, he may not be all that flattered.  Since graduating from the seminary thirty-seven years ago, I have received a total of seven calls.  But what I learned after some research is that in none of those situations was I the first choice of the calling congregation or agency.  In fact, in my very first call (as an assistant pastor) the decision to call another pastor at all was made only on the basis of a minority report made at a voters’ meeting by two elders of that congregation.  How’s that for a little dose of humility? 

            Knowing all of this might give us a little sympathy for poor Matthias, the thirteenth apostle.  He wasn’t called by Jesus directly--not in the same way that the others were; his call came much later.  Matthias wasn’t called because he had a great reputation and a host of impressive qualifications; he was called because the first choice, Judas Iscariot, had proven to be unfit for the job.  And Matthias wasn’t called as the result of a long and intricate process designed to locate and commission the best man for the job; his call came about as the result of what appears to us to have been pure chance.  And yet the calling of Matthias is important to us even today, because it has a lot to teach us about how the Holy Spirit calls servants for the kingdom of God--not just pastors, but all who are called upon to use their God-given talents in the cause of proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ.  In particular we can see in the call of Matthias the means by which God calls and the reaction that He desires from His Church. 

            Through the centuries there have been countless different methods that the Christian Church has used to choose and install its workers.  Jesus Himself simply walked up to people who were otherwise engaged, many at their jobs, and said to them, “Come, follow Me” (Matthew 4:19; Mark 1:17; Matthew 19:21; Mark 10:21; Luke 18:22).  The process employed in the passage before us this morning is most unusual by our standards.  At the seminary we used to joke about the placement committee using a map and darts to decide where we were going, but we realized that these people went about their task in a much more careful, prayerful, and deliberate manner.  But here in the book of Acts they cast lots.  They threw dice!--to find out who the Lord had chosen to replace Judas.  There are, of course, many other methods of choosing the Church’s servants as well.  In some religious traditions clergy and other church workers are appointed by other leaders.  In other traditions those who are to serve are elected.  In some situations everybody just waits around for somebody else to volunteer. 

            In the Lutheran tradition we are accustomed to having our pastors and other leaders elected by the people among whom they are to serve.  There’s more to this than it just being a matter of our having chosen to be democratic about it; we believe, on the basis of Scripture, that the ministry of the Gospel (that is, the pastoral office and whatever other offices the Church may establish to supplement it) was given by Christ to the whole Church, not just to a select few.  We believe, therefore, that it is the prerogative of the entire congregation to call pastors and elect officers for the purpose of carrying out the Church’s work.  But whatever particular method may be used in calling workers in the Church, the purpose of each method is always the same: to try to discern and carry out the will of God in these matters.  Thoughtful Christians desire to choose their leaders not on the basis of politics or popularity, but on the basis of what the Lord wants for His Church.  We determine this by listening very carefully to what God the Holy Spirit has revealed to us in the Word. 

            In our text we notice something significant also in the reaction of the rest after Matthias was chosen.  You don’t hear anyone questioning the final outcome or demanding that it be done over again or casting doubt on the method that was used.  The selection of Matthias was accepted by all.  Christian congregations and conventions today do the same thing when they vote to have a particular election declared to be unanimous. In doing this they are, with one voice, accepting the results of the election, thereby expressing confidence that this is the will of God and is consistent with the teachings of His Word.  Those who voted differently than the majority are falling in line to support the decision of the body.  No matter how much of a longshot the elected candidate may have been at the beginning, that candidate is now acknowledged as the one chosen by the whole Church in accordance with the will of God. 

            So what became of Matthias after he was chosen and accepted?  The text tells us that “he was added to the eleven apostles.”  You might even say that they had a little installation service right then and there.  The lesson for us in this is that the Church of Jesus Christ not only accepts the Lord’s will in these matters; it celebrates the Lord’s will.  After his selection there was no doubt among the believers that Matthias was to be counted among the Lord’s apostles.  There was no dissention about his call.  Neither do we see any evidence of doubt or dissention on the part of Matthias.  We don’t hear him making excuses as to why he cannot assume this responsibility.  We don’t hear him insisting that he is not as well-qualified as others might be.  We don’t hear him complaining that he wasn’t the Lord’s first choice.  And we don’t hear him contending that he’s too busy with other things to take on this additional work.  God’s choice of Matthias, revealed through the action of the Church, was accepted and celebrated by all. 

            It may seem that all of this talk about Matthias, the thirteenth apostle, is merely an academic discussion.  After all, what could this possibly have to do with us?  What it has to do with us is this: that thirteenth apostle--the one who seems to have been chosen by chance, apparently as an afterthought—could be you.  As I have already mentioned, I have been that thirteenth disciple in every pastoral position in which I have served or been invited to serve.  The Lord of the Church, who knows all and sees all, makes His perfect decisions in His own time and in His own way.  He does it through His Church--people who are by no means infallible but are nevertheless armed with the power of the Spirit, which is evident in the means of grace.  And He often chooses people who in the wisdom of the world would never have been chosen--people like you and me.  And  He gives us the grace and the wisdom to follow the example of Matthias and the earliest Church, submerging ourselves in His Word and prayer as we listen intently for His will for us and accept it with humility, confidence, and joy. 

Amen. 

May the God of peace, who brought again from the dead that great Shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, by the blood of the everlasting covenant equip you thoroughly for the doing of His will.  May He work in you everything which is pleasing to Him, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom be honor and glory forever and ever.  He who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.  Amen.