“The Heat Is ON” Daniel 3:13-18

S-1037 2/27/08 5SMIL/3A. Hymns: (S)#427 vv 1, 5, 7; # 516 ; (C) #552 vv 1, 4, 8

Texts: Psalm 48; Joshua, 3:1-4; 2 Corinthians 4:6-11; Matthew 27:11-31

Theme: “The Heat Is ON” Daniel 3:13-18

Armour, SD. SOLI DEO GLORIA (5th sermon in series on “Singing the Songs of Zion)

“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us ...” Dan. 3:17

In July of 1989, I, along with my wife and two sons headed to St. Louis, MO., to begin my seminary training. Our apartment was on the third floor and the temperature was very hot; and we had no air-conditioner. It’s sweltering and sizzling, suffocating and sticky; it’s a scorcher for sure! The sun is out, the temperature is up and the sweat is rolling’ down. It feels like a five-alarm fire and it’s as hot as hell! All because the heat is on!

But this heat is not as bad as others have faced. You don’t believe me; just ask Hannaniah, Misheal and Azariah. Don't know who they are? Perhaps you know them by their Babylonian names—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Well whatever you call them they are standing in the heat. They are Hebrews in exile. Remember God had the Babylonians sweep over their homeland and take the people into exile because they failed to keep the God of their Fathers as their God. Instead they worshipped every other god they could get their hands on. These three, although they were faithful to God, were swept away with everyone else. Now they are in a hot spot as they are trying to hold on to their faithfulness to the God of their Father’s Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They are three in the midst of 300, 000 people. They had better blend in, bow down and sell out because King Nebuchnezzar has made a golden statue that is 12½ feet wide 125 feet high and issued this decree, “At the sound of music everybody must to bow down and worship my statue or else in the same hour they will know, first hand, that the heat is on!”

As they sweat bullets we can imagine these three Hebrews conversing, Shach: “What does it matter if we bow down to a statue just this once?” Meshach: “Besides, what a great opportunity we have to be a part of this stadium event!” Azariah, (speaking like a seminarian): “And besides, I’d rather cooperate and assimilate and tolerate and then graduate rather than hyperventilate!”

When the heat is on us and we are the three in the midst of the 300,000 – when we’re called to “not be ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe” – when we’re called to “not be conformed to this present evil age” – when we’re called to “confess the Son of Man before men with the promise that He will then confess us before the Father in heaven” all too often we shrink back like cowards, not wanting to be known or stand out or bow down. We would rather compromise and be comfortable, rather stand up, or stand out. There’s a part of us that soaks up the “air conditioned Christian life” where there is no sweat, no perspiration with plenty of ice tea and Pepsi to go around for everybody!

When faced with moral compromise – like internet pornography … when faced with ecclesiastical compromise – like character assassination … when faced with doctrinal compromise like “anything goes” … we say, “It won’t hurt if I DO IT JUST THIS ONCE. Besides, it’s fashionable to be “undecided” these days. Besides no one knows what goes on behind closed doors. And besides, I’ve seen what happens to marshmallows at campfires – hamburgers at barbeques – and yesterday’s leftovers in today’s ill-timed microwave ovens, they all burn up when the heat is on!”

In spite of these temptations Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are ready to take the heat: Listen to their bold witness and the words that will put them to death: “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us.” At this point our heroes appear to be hanging on for dear life, for all of the cards are stacked up against them. It appears that they are falling fast from the favor of the King. Everything around them is crumbling fast and they are surrounded by those who want to devour them. It’s that bad because Nebuchadnezzar is filled with rage and orders the furnace to be heated seven times hotter. This death chamber even has a window on the side through which spectators can watch the baking, the broiling and the burning when the heat is on!

Refusing to blend in, bow down or sell out Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are tied up and thrown into this blazing heat. And get this; the fire is so hot that it kills the men who take them up to the opening of the furnace!

Now what happens when just a few stand up against so many? What happens when people take a radical stand and turn neither to the right nor to the left? What happens when believers say, “Enough is enough! I will not sell out! I will not bow down! I will not bend!” I’ll let Nebuchadnezzar answer that for us: “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth one looks like a Son of God.”

Amazing! Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are saved by the same Son of God whose kingdom Daniel earlier describes as, “… a kingdom that will never be destroyed …. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.” This is the same Son Daniel sees in chapter seven, “… coming with the clouds of Heaven, approaching the Ancient of Days and led into His presence. He is given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and people of every language worship Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” And this is the same Son of God whom Daniel says in chapter 12 writes our names in His book so that He will completely deliver us on the day when our bodies awake from the dust of the earth and enter the fullness of everlasting life!

And the result of their bold stand? The hair on their head isn’t singed, their clothing is unaffected, and they don’t even smell like smoke! I can’t even leave a bowling alley without smelling like smoke, but the Son of God’s protection is so thorough, so complete they don’t even smell like smoke!

This same Son of God climactically entered the furnace once again – only this time it was one against the world. Look. The heat is on; it’s sweltering and sizzling, suffocating and sticky, it’s a scorcher for sure because the Palestinian sun is out, the temperature is up and the sweat is rolling down His bleeding, battered and butchered body. It’s as hot as hell literally because Jesus Christ is taking the heat for your sins and mine. His cracked lips and parched throat cry out one word in John 19:28 – DIPSO – in Greek – in English two words, “I thirst!”

Three days later this Jesus came out of the fire alive – forever unbound – to make this promise from Isaiah 43, straight from His heart to yours – “When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.”

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego speak before a king and they are not put to shame. They not only say: “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us ...” But also – as true theologians of the cross – they say, “But even if God does not save us now, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Today God is calling and empowering us to make this same bold confession – that Jesus Christ is Lord, that there is new life in Him, and that we refuse to blend in, bow down or sell out to any person or system that would rob us of this Gospel! All to the end … that along with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego…. we are confident to sing this song all the days of our life …

“Great is thy faithfulness. Morning by morning new mercies I see; all I have needed, thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness Lord unto me” (LSB # 810. refrain).

“No Condemnation” (Romans 8:1)

S-1038 3/09/08 5SIL/3A. Hymns: (O) #; (S) #; (C) #

Texts: Ezekiel 37:1-14; Romans 8:1-11; John 11:17-27, 38-53

Theme: “No Condemnation” (Romans 8:1)

Armour, SD. SOLI DEO GLORIA

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! The text for our meditation is from the Epistle lesson: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1)

Saints in Christ, the greatest missionary and apostle, Paul speaks to our divided hearts about sin and its consequences. But of more value and benefit, are the emphases of the beautiful message that the letter to Rome has for us. It is the message about the changes that will come upon our hearts–the hearts of the believers. Therefore, there is no condemnation to those who believe. Through the power of the Word, Paul lifts the heart of the sinner from the depths of hell to the heights of heaven.

Paul gives us encouragement in this chapter about the believer’s life of faith. He the believer is not condemned. This verse, Romans 8:1 comes on the heels of Chapter 7. There Paul paints for us, in very vivid colors, the “Civil War” of the Christian. In Chapter 7, Paul speaks frankly about the struggle to live in keeping the demands of the Law of God. We are not immune from this struggle either. Paul, (as well all as other Christians) struggled daily to live up to what the Word of God asked of us. For those who don’t keep the Word of God the consequences, of course, are death, (Romans 3:23, 6:23). Yet, Paul does not ship us to the morgue. He points us to Christ and His redeeming work. “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! (7:24-25).

Chapter eight is the climax, culmination and the crest of the book of Romans. In this chapter Paul concludes his careful presentation of salvation NOT by works of man, but by FAITH alone that is rooted in Christ alone. Here Paul gives us on a silver platter the glorious statement of the certainty of God’s love and salvation in Jesus Christ. With this verse Paul emphasizes the same words of John: “Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the SIN of the world” (John 1:29). Paul wants the troubled soul to have hope with this truth: “There is NO CONDEMNATION ‘judgment, punishment, sentence, or penalty to those who are in Christ Jesus.

Did you notice the big important word “NOW?” Therefore, there is now no condemnation, there is no handing down the sentence of death to those who are in Christ Jesus. Why is that word important? Two reasons:

First, it is about the believer being in Christ right now, not yesterday or any time in the past. The believer could be either a Jew or a Gentile, slave or free, male or female before. What matters is that one is in Christ now. One who is not in Christ now is not in the Spirit, but in the flesh. This life is according to the desire of the flesh and is at enmity with God (Rom. 8:7). So for those who are not in Christ there is condemnation even now. But one who is confessing Christ as Lord and believes in His heart that God raised Him from the dead, right NOW, is a Child of God and has been saved. Salvation is a present reality that continues into eternity, as long as there is faith in Jesus. Even our daily sins of neither weakness, nor even our iniquities can cancel this salvation or justification as long as faith is granted by God

Second, because salvation has already started, justification has also taken place. It is both present and future. That which Christ has begun He will complete (Phil. 1:6). This is the joy and hope of the believers. It is ‘in Christ’ that we receive the blessings of being saved, and are not condemned. For Paul, then, “no condemnation” means freedom not only from sin’s guilt but also from its enslaving power.

In Christ Jesus, we are given the gift of forgiveness. God’s forgiveness is not a mere passing emotion, but rather a forgiveness that affects our entire soul and body. This forgiveness has been given to us as Paul writes in Colossians 2:13-15 “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” In Christ Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we learn the meaning of no condemnation. In Christ Jesus Paul secures our joy, hope, faith, and eternal life. The more a person spends time unpacking and unwrapping this verse, the more gold appears on the heart of the believer. These words begin to take a different meaning when you know that your sins have been cast into the depth of the sea. Your sins don’t hang around your neck like a noose.

Even though we are not condemned on account of Christ, even thought we are forgiven on account of Christ and even though we know that we will spend eternity in heaven on account of Christ, yet we are so quick to condemn others, we are not so quick to forgive them. We remember the things they say against us and we hold them accountable. We act as Judge and Jury and damn them to hell. How sad it is that we who follow the Savior, His teachings and His love don’t act like Him in word or deed.

Therefore, I pray that you will see the image that the Apostle Paul develops for us in this book. Paul, that great evangelist, and Good News teller help us [Christians] to continue to walk humbly in faith that are rooted and anchored in the cross and the empty tomb. Here he asserts strongly that we are not condemned. I like to use a different word for ‘condemnation’ – ‘punishment.’ What Paul in essence is saying: There is no more punishment for me, no more sin that the righteous Judge is singling out for which to hit me. Can that be so? “Yes,” Paul declares with absolute certainty. There is no sin, no punishment, no hell, no casting out to those who are in Christ Jesus.

Paul doesn’t want us to leave here without seeing the full picture so he takes us in spirit to heaven’s courtroom. We—you and I enter with fear and trepidation, because we know what we will hear and see God the Eternal Judge, seated in all of His glory on the bench. Each of us–sinners is on trial. As we sit, we see the witnesses marching one after another to take their places at the prosecution table.

The first witness for the prosecution is the law. The law takes the stand. “Your honor, this man, is guilty. He has done what I said he shouldn’t and DIDN’T do what I said he should. Your honor, I present you with these exhibits of his life. File after file show his breaking of the law, his infractions, his disobedience, and his defiance.

Second, comes death with its ugly head and black robe. “Honorable Judge, You know what Your Word declares: “The wages for sin is DEATH” (Romans 3:23). You, Yourself have made it plain and clear there is no confusion here, Honorable Judge, You said: “The soul that sins should die” (Ezekiel 18:4, 20). Your Honor, You must carry the sentence. You are a just Judge, and You will not back away from Your Word.

The final witness, satan, rises to his feet and with a smile on his face, looks at the accused and slowly slithers and slides towards the bench. “Judge,” he says, “This sinner, this man that has broken Your every command and disobeyed Your every Word, belongs in my hell. He is not worthy. I have kept a full record of every error and marked each slip. He’s spent much of his life following and listening to me. He has worshiped me more than You. He has honored me with his life, instead of you. I claim his soul throughout an eternity of hell. Judge I am waiting for Your sentence

The sinner sits on the bench, his hands begin to sweat, the room begin to heat up and the case appears air tight. He drops his head in shame. Hell can be seen opening its jail doors and satan opening his jaws to devour (1 Peter 5:8).

But then, something beautiful occurs. The doors of the court burst wide open, and a man who is covered by blood and has a crown of thorns on His head, pierced hands and feet approaches the bench. He doesn’t belong here. Who is this man? Why has He come? He comes as my advocate, my attorney. At first appearance, He doesn’t look like He can stand to defend me. But then, I the sinner remember the Words of St. John, “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have One who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2). Yes, this is the attorney that Paul wants me to see and hear. And what an attorney He is!

Paul describes Him as Christ, who died, and was raised to life on the third day, is at God’s right hand, and intercedes for ME. My attorney has already died for me. He rose to show that He has paid enough for me. Now at God’s right hand He’s busy representing me. He never loses a case. He is always successful in defending the guilty party.

The Judge stands up and speaks with a very clear voice, “Case dismissed! All penalties have been paid in full. All punishments have been carried out. All charges have been removed. You are free. You will live not in hell, but here with Me in heaven From now on, you will be My child and call me ‘Abba,’ Father” (Rom. 8:15). There are no greater and sweeter words to hear than these. YOU ARE FORGIVEN! YOU ARE NOT GUILTY! THERE IS NO CONDEMNATION. At the hearing of the sentence, satan is suddenly silent. And you, the sinner, are suddenly jubilant. You have stood before the Eternal Judge and heard Him declare you, NOT GUILTY! Amen. and Amen.

Now the peace of God…

Bike for Life Update

So far by the grace of God, we have collected almost $10,080.71 for the Bike For Life. SDG.

Keep the funds coming

In Christ's love and in His service,

Rev. Nabil S. Nour Pastor and foot washer Phil. 1:6
Redeemer Lutheran Church
P. O. Box 158
Armour, SD. 57313-0158
(605)724-2489 (O)
(605)724-2722 (H)
redeemarmour@unitelsd.com
"Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" Philippians 1:6

Theme: “Blindness of the Heart” (Isaiah 42:16)

S-1036 3/02/08 3SIL/3A. Hymns: (O) #1; (S) #57 SOD; (C) #47

Texts: Isaiah 42:14-21; Ephesians 5:8-14, John 9:1-7, 13-17, 34-39

Theme: “Blindness of the Heart” (Isaiah 42:16)

Armour, SD. SOLI DEO GLORIA

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! The text for our meditation is from the O.T. “And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them” (Is. 42:16).

Saints in Christ, last Saturday morning I was leaving my home and walking towards my office. As I shut the garage door, there before me where two men, dressed in white shirts and ties, and holding a bag in their hands. Yes, you guessed it, they were Jehovah Witnesses.

They looked at me with those hungry eyes, here is a sucker lets go after him. Sure enough, as I neared them, they said “Hello” and wanted to give me a pamphlet. I said, “No thank you. I know all about your religion.” Their response, “You do?” I told them, “That I didn’t believe in their teachings. They were wrong. They were not Christians because they deny the Trinity”. One of them, Tom said, to me, how do you understand John 14:28? This is how it reads: “You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I’”.

The main point of this argument is that Jesus is not God, but lesser than God. He is only human. I didn’t have my Bible with me, but I used the Scripture to communicate the Truth of who Jesus is. That is, as far as His humanity is concerned indeed He is less than God the Father. I used Philippians 2 to verify the States of Humiliation and Exaltation. I further stated that He is equal in majesty and glory to God the Father and the Holy Spirit. I believe that Jesus is the Author of Scripture. He is the One who Created the world and came to save the world from sin and the devil. We went back and forth for almost half an hour of looking this verse and that verse. We even discussed the work of the Holy Spirit that He is God. But they refuted that also. I pointed them to Acts 5: “But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? 4While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.’” (Acts 5:1-4).

They would not listen or see what I was trying to convey. Tom was getting mad at me. But I wouldn’t back up in my saying, “You are not Christians, since you deny the Trinity. We worship God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. They are not three gods, but One God in three persons”. After all of the discussions we had I walked away realizing that they are blind to the truth. They have chosen this blindness. And this blindness of the heart is worse than physical blindness.

This is what we have in the text before us today. Blindness of the heart drives us away from the good and gracious God, who has made the human eye to see Him as the Savior of mankind. We only see the things that make sense to our eyes. We attempt to prove what we can see.

Sight is one of our senses that help us see so that we may believe. However, in matters of faith, sight is not necessary, because we believe not because we see the evidence, but rather on account of the Word of God. You and I see the deeds and works of God through the power of the Holy Spirit. Faith clings for what is believed without any evidence.

In the words before us this morning, Isaiah tells the Israelites what God is going to do, because they have been disobedient to His will and command. He is sick of them and is going to punish them for all of the evil they have done and continue to do because their hearts are blind to the truth—the truth that leads to eternal life. They have become spiritually blind; this blindness got in the way of the message of God.

We, too, the new Israel have problems with our eye sights. Man-Made ideas always blind us and others to hear the truth. The “American Way” is to come up with our “own ideas,” even beliefs, so that we can feel good about ourselves. The danger: the better we feel about ourselves, the greater the likelihood we are “walking on thin ice!”

The truth is that there is much difference between physical and spiritual blindness. Physical blindness is known to the person. If a blind person gets into a car and drives away, he knows he is in trouble. But spiritual blindness is not known. These people don’t see the wrong they are living in. The spiritually blind person chooses to elevate his way over God’s way. The spiritually blind person attempts to put God on the same level of your next door neighbor, rather than the God of Creation.

How often we shut our eyes to the truth of God’s Word. We ignore His command and will for our lives. Many of us live our lives as if God doesn’t matter nor does His Word. That is what the devil does, just like the Jehovah Witnesses attempts to do when they knock at someone’s door. They attempt to blind us with their worldly wisdom, rather than God’s Word for life and salvation. Any time we don’t seek God’s Spirit for guidance and direction we remain darkness.

The sermon hymn “Amazing Grace” speaks well of what God does for the spiritually blind. Listen again, Amazing Grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost but now am found, was BLIND, but now I see! Did you get it? We are blind to the truth of God. But as you hear the voice of the Prophet Isaiah, we are told what God will do: “And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.”

Notice who is the Agent of this work? Notice who will lead the blind? It is God the One who made the eye of man to see His glory and majesty. The Apostle Paul said this: “for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, ‘Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you’” (Eph. 5:8-13).

Isaiah, Paul and John point to the Christ of Scripture, the One who through His death and resurrection has opened our eyes and resolved the problem of the blindness of the heart. The Christ of Scripture while walking the dusty roads of Palestine kneeled down and mixed some mud and put it on a blind man and his eyes were opened and he could see.

We, who come to this hospital for sinners, known as Redeemer Lutheran Church, receive the cure of the blindness and we see our desperate condition. We see our sins that separate us from God’s grace--the blindness that keep us from the light of the Gospel. But with the touch of Christ’s love which He gave us, our eyes are open to see Him as the true God, the heavenly Messenger who came to not only open the eyes of the blind physically, but more importantly to remove the spiritual blindness.

It was only few years back that I needed glasses to help me see better at night. Those glasses have helped me to see better, drive more cautiously and get there safely. So it is with the Gospel lenses that the Savior, Jesus Christ provides us with through His Word and Sacrament. Jesus opens the eyes of the blind. He leads us in ways we have never gone before. He allows us to see that in His suffering and death and resurrection, He has removed the scales from our eyes so that we may know Him as the One who has given us light, salvation and eternal life.

Unlike the Jehovah Witnesses, you and I have come here because we acknowledge that we can’t always see the ways and methods of God. But as we are privileged to sit at His feet, listen to His voice, and feel the touch of His pierced hands on our face, we see Him as the Savior of our salvation. I thank God that you came to this hospital for sinners. By Him the blindness of the heart has been removed and filled with the light of God’s grace. Amen.

Now the peace…

“I’ve Never Been This Way Before” Joshua 3:4

S-1035 2/27/08 4SMIL/3A. Hymns: (S)#376; # 780 LSB; (C) #554

Texts: Psalm 46; Exodus 17:6 1 Corinthians 10:1-10; Matthew 26:57-7:10

Theme: “I’ve Never Been This Way Before” Joshua 3:4

Armour, SD. SOLI DEO GLORIA (4th sermon in series on “Singing the Songs of Zion)

“You have never been this way before.” (Joshua 3:4).

My son David was taken by my wife to his first day of Pre-school. As my wife introduced him to his teacher and classmates, his face changed. He had that look—a look of fear. My wife was about to leave, and David clung to her leg for dear life. Every time she attempted to walk, he grasped tighter and harder and cried louder and would not let go. Finally, my wife had to slowly remove each of his fingers and quickly close the door behind her. While she is walking away, she could hear his screams and sobbing. And she cried too. This went on for two full weeks. Each day the emotions, the tears, the holding and screaming were the same. David was frightened to be left behind. He more than likely thought that mom was not coming back and maybe even there were giants behind those closed doors. You see, David had never been this way before.

Neither had Joshua. The officers in our text remind both him and Israel, “You have never been this way before.” Joshua had traveled along with Moses from Egypt to Sinai, and all of the places God had led them. For 40 years they have traveled by the guidance and leadership of God as revealed to Moses. Joshua even entered Cannan to spy out the land. But now, he stands on the east bank of the Jordan River gazing west into the Promised Land, Joshua knew in all his travels he had “never been this way before.”

The Pre-school room for David looked as an ominous and fearful place. And so it was for the Israelites as they stood at the Jordan’s bank. They thought that giants were waiting to JUMP OUT and eat them for late-night snacks. Didn’t those who spied the land say “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size!” (Numbers 13:32)

What made this time difficult for them is that Moses is now dead. There had been no circumcision or Passover for 40 years. But now the time is different, it is spring so the Jordan River was at flood stage; Jericho was looming in the immediate future with its wall. And according to Numbers: “The Amalekites live in the Negev, the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan” (Num. 13:29) Joshua stands before a difficult, ominous, and fearful place. “HE HAD NEVER BEEN THIS WAY BEFORE.”

You know that same sinking feeling and so do I. Maybe you’re terrified at the thought of what is happening to mom. She is beginning to loose her ability to think, and you are looking for a place to place her. You have never been this way before. Maybe, you are looking at the casket of your child who died due to a bus crash. You have never been this way before. Perhaps you are bringing a new child home or watching your last child leave home. You have never been this way before. Maybe you’re faced with a company that is downsizing the work force and your stomach tied in knots. You have never been this way before. Maybe you’re facing a difficult marriage, or have lost a sibling, or bills that won’t go away. You have never been this way before. Some of us are facing a future that is known only to our God because it is so painful, so private; so problematic. Whatever the difficult, ominous, and fearful place, we mutter under our breath, “I’ve never been this way before.”

These difficulties and hardships could lead to three-fold temptations: First, do nothing. Joshua could have said, “Let’s park the car. There is no reason to enter the Land. Second, turn back. Joshua might have thought, “Egypt never looked so good – give me leeks and onions by the Nile!” Third, try another way. Joshua could have commanded, “Let’s go north, around the Sea of Galilee, and make Hazor our first hit.”

Numerous times we are in the same boat as the Israelites. Sin can have us do nothing or turn back or try another way. On the brink of our Jordan River with giants waiting on the other side we doubt that our God has given us His “very great and precious promises.” We doubt that our God has “blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” We create a small, impotent god that is made in our image and in our likeness. And the voice of God is drowned by our fears and foibles.

This disobedience is compounded by our inclination to tune into radio station KF ...EAR – KFEAR. Satan, the daily host of the program says, “Take no chances. Say no to courage and yes to caution. Expect the worst. Triple-lock all doors. Protect yourself in a tight radius of won’ts, don’ts, cant’s and quits. Think about every possible peril, focus on the dangers, and worry yourself with ‘What if?’ Come weal, come woe, make your status QUO!”

But “GO”, is the chorus line in Joshua 3; the word appears nine times in the chapter. The LORD has always called His people to go. To Abram He said, “Go to the land I will show you.” To Moses, “Go, I am sending you to Pharaoh.” To Jonah, “Go to the great city of Nineveh.” To Samuel, “Go anoint David as king of Israel” To Elijah, “Go tell Ahab there will be no rain in the land”

And He calls us to “Go into ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.” Yet, when the LORD says “go”, it is in His heart that we never go it alone. He knows that a difficult, ominous, and fearful place is not conquered by promising, “I’ll be with you in spirit.” A mystical, abstract, vague presence does no good. Just ask David of his real fears. When you are standing on the Jordan of difficult, ominous and fearful place, you need real presence. And real presence is exactly what the LORD delivers. In Joshua chapter 3, for the first time in Israel’s history, the Ark of the Covenant leads. This ark is mentioned 17 times in Joshua 3 and 4. Get it?

The LORD calls his people to go, but never to go it alone. And what is this ark, but the LORD Himself! “Whenever the ark set out, Moses said, ‘Rise up ... the LORD!’” Numbers10:35).. The ark does not symbolize the LORD or represent the LORD. “Rise up, O LORD!” In, with, and under the ark is the LORD Himself, really present.

And real presence means real victory. The ark leads and Joshua marches, beginning at Jericho and continuing to conquer the whole land and defeating all his enemies and placing them under his feet. “So Joshua took the entire land, just as the LORD had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance to Israel” (Joshua 11:23).

In the fullness of time, the Ark of the Covenant “became flesh and dwelt among us ...and we have seen His glory!” His march began at Bethlehem and Nazareth. It continued in the face of kings – Tiberius Caesar, Herod, Philip. From East to west and North to South He traveled to accomplish the saving of the world. When God the Father said, “Go!” Jesus went. He came to the heart of the city of Jerusalem, and there He marched to face the destructive powers of hell. From the Upper Room to Gethsemane, and on to the Hill of death, He marched. Dripping with blood that was pouring out of His veins, He went to Golgotha, and there they crucified Him. In all of His travel, Jesus had never been this way before.

Yet three days later the march went on!

And this victory march continues today. Jesus leads us from victory to victory by His real presence; the Gospel proclaimed, the baptismal deliverance remembered, and the body and blood of the Eucharist celebrated, “This is the feast of victory for our God!” And with joy we await our final journey the resurrection of the body and the life of the world to come!

Because of the cleansing blood, the resurrection joy and the power of Pentecost many on the east bank of their Jordan Rivers have dared to march straight ahead. Paul tells us why. 2 Corinthians 2: 14: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ.” Whatever your difficult, ominous and fearful place is, God is telling, “lo, I am with you always to the very end of the earth.” God is calling. He says GO, but guarantees you will never, ever, ever go it alone. Joshua 3:11: “See, the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you.”

And our response?

“Christ be my Leader by night as by day; safe through the darkness for He is the way. Gladly I follow my future His care. Darkness is daylight when Jesus is there” (LSB # 861.1).

“An Arduous Journey” (Gen. 12:7, 8)

S-1034 2/24/08 3SIL/3A. Hymns: (O) #354; (S) #149 L.S. 356; 315; 355; 489; (C) #54

Texts: Exodus 17:1-7; Romans 5:1-8, John 4:5-26

Theme: “An Arduous Journey” (Gen. 12:7, 8)

Armour, SD. SOLI DEO GLORIA

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! The text for our meditation is from the O.T. “All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink” (Ex. 17:1)

Saints in Christ, we are all traveling on a journey on the road of life. From the day we are born till we die we are journeying. Some of our journeys are short and others are long. Some journeys are sweet and others are bitter. Some journeys are physical, emotional and still other is spiritual. Some of our journeys are smooth and others are arduous.

Each of you knows what I am speaking about. Some of you have been on these journeys, and some are traveling on them even today. Some of these journeys causes you a lot of pain, and others give you a lot of joy.

For the last 6 months my journey has been a difficult one. On September 14th, I had gotten word that my youngest sister was diagnosed with cancer. On November 2nd she went to be with the Lord. That was a heavy journey. A month ago, I got another word that 4 family members were injured in a terrible car accident. Though God spared their lives one of the members (my sister has had a rough time with her legs). A week later my other sister was admitted to the hospital with inflammation in her shoulders. When she got out, my older brother was admitted for five day to the hospital. And if that is not enough two weeks ago we found out that Jean’s brother (Phil) has been diagnosed with cancer.

All of these events in my life have been indeed a heaven burden to bear. It is an arduous journey on the road of life. Many bitter tears have wet my cheeks. Many prayers have been lifted up. Many hours of concern have occupied my heart, head and home. Through all of these pains, I have been crying out to God for His help and support.

In the readings before us today, we meet others who are traveling on a road, not just any road but a road to the Promised Land. The Israelites had been delivered by the mighty hands of God. He has overthrown Pharaoh and his armies. He had provided them protection in the day and night. He gave them enough food to eat the manna and quail. And now they reached a point that they are beside themselves. They have been traveling for days on end. The wind was blowing on their face, the sun’s blistering heat baking them; and anguish and fatigue took its toll.

And now at Rephidim they fall down, they complain and grumble against Moses and against God. At Rephidim they cry out against God instead of calling upon Him to help them as He has done in the past. Instead of seeking His counsel, they rely on the human figure that stood before them.

They forgot that they are God’s very special people. They forgot the goodness and grace of God in all that He had done. They lost focus that the One who delivered them from the bondage of slavery in Egypt will bring them to the Promised Land.

Before you say how can they forget so soon? How can they treat God in that way and disregard all of the blessings He has given them? Ask yourself these questions: “How often have you asked God on your arduous journey of life, ‘why God?’ ‘Where are you God when I need you most?’ Father in heaven, ‘how come You don’t respond to my prayers?’ Lord, why are You are so far away from me in my hour of need? My road is hot, my burden is heavy, and my heart is broken

At times like these we need to lift our eyes from ourselves and look to Him who supplies all of our needs. The Apostle Paul wrote, “Being confident of this very thing that He who has began a good work in you will bring it to completion.” Again, “My God will meet all of YOUR NEEDS in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6; 4:19). And again, “Our [God], will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:8).

Search, seek and study Scripture and you will find if you don’t know already God’s hand is not short toward those He love. Spend time with Him and you will see how provide you and me with all that we need—the greatest of which is our salvation, forgiveness of sins and life eternal.

Don’t for a moment think that you are the only one who has an arduous journey. All of us do and all of us will. At different times it may be more severe than at others, but none-the-less we feel the pain and anguish as we go through these journeys.

Consider the example of St. Paul, whom Jesus told that He also must suffer greatly on account of Him (Acts 9:16), so that when Paul encountered beatings, rejection, and imprisonment while on his journeys, Paul thought nothing of it but that he was privileged to be blessed by the Lord.

But if ever there was One who took a journey that was indeed an arduous one it is Jesus. Matthew put it this: “From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised” (Mt. 16:21).

The difference between the Savior and us is very clear. We never wish to go through an arduous journey. No one wants to go through pain, suffering, hardships and difficulties in life. If we are sincerely honest, we would rather that our lives are smooth sailing without any complication.

C. S. Lewis wrote this bit of wisdom: “Pain is not good in itself. What is good in any painful experience is, for the sufferer, his submission to the will of God, and, for the spectators, the compassion aroused and the acts of mercy to which it leads”. We may not want pain, but pain draws us to a closer walk with the Lord and Savior.

However, Jesus chooses to go to Jerusalem. He chooses to suffer. He chooses to be persecuted, crucified and be put to death for YOU. This was His choice for YOU. This choice was made because of His love for you, because He couldn’t imagine not having you with Him in heaven. C.S. Lewis has described Jesus’ life well. Jesus submitted to the will of the Father, praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Father, not my will, but Thine be done.” Where the Israelites and US failed God’s testing, grumbled against Him, and doubted His presence, Jesus did not put the Lord God to the test, but praised His Name in the hour of testing, and put His trust in His ever-present Divine Father.

Jesus had an arduous journey. It started when He left the beauty of Him and choose to become flesh and blood and be born like us. His journey took Him to Bethlehem, to Egypt and then to Nazareth. Then it led Him to Jerusalem. In Jerusalem that journey got more severe as He gathered His 12 apostles on Thursday night in the Upper Room. He walked to Gethsemane and asked God to take that pain, anguish and hardships away from Him. He was further dragged to Caiaphas, from the High Priests’ house He was taken to Pilate, from Pilate to Herod, and from Herod back to Pilate. The journey didn’t end there, but the command was given take Him and beat Him and crucify Him. So He carried the cross after his beating. He walked for miles until He reached the mountain upon which He would be crucified and there He died.

His was an arduous journey. A journey that He took for us and in our place for all of the times we have grumbled and complained against God. A journey that He willingly endured for YOU and YOU and YOU, so that satan may not lead us to the journey of the Abyss of hell.

Today, as you and I go through our journeys of life, they may be short or long, they may be sweet or bitter, they may be physical, emotional, or spiritual, no matter what the journey is, be certain of the promise that the Savior Almighty will never leave you or forsake.

And for that we can give thanks to the Father of all grace who gave us His Son, Jesus to take our arduous journey for us. Amen.

Now the peace….

Theme: “A Construction Man” (Gen. 12:7, 8)

S-1031 2/17/08 2SIL/3A. Hymns: (O)#473; (S)#467 (C) #32 S.O.D.

Texts: Genesis 12:1-9; Romans 4:1-8, 13-17; John 3:1-17Matthew 4-1-11

Theme: “A Construction Man” (Gen. 12:7, 8)

Armour, SD. SOLI DEO GLORIA

(This sermon will be done in a first person narrative. Abraham will come out during the last stanza of the sermon hymn. He will be dressed in a Mesopotamia’s garments. He will sit on the steps by the Altar). (Gen. 12:7, 8)

Abraham comes out slowly looks at the congregation and sits down. Lifting his head upward begins to speak:

I am an old man now and have seen much in my 75 years upon the earth. I need to sit, because I am very tired from my travel. I would like you to know that I come from a long line of godly men—Construction men in my family. My 10th generation grandfather Noah, is well known to you. He is known to you as the builder of an arch that floated on the flood water for 150 days. But you probably didn’t know that he also built an Altar to the God of the Universe and the Maker of heaven and earth after the Lord delivered him and his family from the flood waters.

This same God, the God of all Grace, the one who made heaven and earth out of nothing came to me and spoke to me. This God who is unlike any of the other gods that many of my country men had in their homes and bowed too, came to me with a promise that I shall never forget.

Here is what He said to me:

“Abram, Leave your country, your people and your father’ household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

As I said before, I come from a family of construction men. My brother Nahor was busy building a city that he named after himself. But God came to me so that He might build a nation out of my seed. Out of my own body a nation would be raised to be the chosen people that speak of the God of all Grace.

It is hard for me to grasp this kindness, this grace, this love that God poured on me. As a way of thanking my gracious God, I built an altar to worship Him. That was my way to declare that God was the number one in my life and in my heart. As I picked each stone, I thought of what the altar upon which I would offer a sacrifice to praise Him meant.

This altar was used by my whole family. It was dedicated to the God of all Grace, the God of Noah, by whose Spirits I got to know Him. I didn’t worship by this altar alone, but all who came with me from Haran. I would teach these people about the God who has power and who has made Himself known to me and showed me kindness. In the new land we would worship the God of might and power, the God of goodness and grace, the God who called me out of all the men of my country.

Can you believe those promises? Me, Abram who am childless, would one day, have children as numerous as the sand of the sea shore and the stars in the skies. That wasn’t easy for me to believe. How can that be? I am just one man with a lovely wife and old man at that and my wife is past her childbearing years. Yet the promises of God entailed details that were beyond my understanding.

What if God spoke with you and told you these things? Would you have believed them? Would you have taken them to heart? But for me there was something in that voice. The voice of the One of all Grace who brought the world and everything that is in it out of nothing.

Oh, I should tell you that this was not the only time I constructed an Altar. Years later after these promises had been fulfilled and God gave me my own son—in my old age—the son whom I loved and named Isaac—meaning laughter, God came to me again. This time He asked me to do the impossible. PAUSE.

He said to me, “Abraham!” (by now my name has been changed from Abram to Abraham meaning the father of many nation).

“Here I am,” I replied.

Then God said [to me], “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”

Did I hear what God said? Was it true that He asked me to sacrifice my son or did I imagine it? God couldn’t! He wouldn’t! He can’t do this! Isaac is my son, he is the promised seed. He is the one who would be the line that would be the source of all nations. If I sacrifice my son, how will I be the father of many nations?

Yet, in my ears I heard the words, but they were hard to swallow. But in obedience, I knew I needed to follow the will of God. I had been walking and constructing altars for him for over 25 years. Even if I put my son to the death, I BELIEVED, God could and would raise Him from the dead.

And so, in obedience to the will and command of God, I took my son, the one I love and headed to the mountain that the Lord directed me to. As we reached the mountain, I asked my servants to wait for us, while Isaac and I would continue to the mountain to worship the God of all Grace.

As we were walking, with Isaac carrying the wood for the burnt offering; he said, “Father, we have the wood, and the fire but with the lamb?” I looked at him with tender eyes and said, “My son the Lord will provide.”

Off to the mountain we went. One step after another and with each step, my hands began to sweat, my throat began to dry and tears began to well up within. I knew what lay ahead, but I kept hearing the voice of God, “Abraham, take your son, your only son Isaac the one you love…”

{Abraham gets up from the stairs and goes to the middle of the sanctuary}

Slowly (as if to drag the inevitable) I took the stones as Isaac brought them to me and piled them high, until at last the construction project was done—the altar for the sacrifice was complete.

Then, I had Isaac stretch out his hands and I tied them. I bent down and tied his legs, and picked him up and laid him on the altar (demonstrate) PAUSE.

I had hoped that I had forgotten the knife, but no it was right were it always has been by my side. I picked up the knife. I took a deep breath, and the smell of smoke burned within my lungs as I was about to torch the wood which was upon the altar, which held my son, my only son Isaac the one I love.

My hands now wet from sweat lost its grip on the hand of the knife. So I tightened my fist harder against the knife. My eyes met my son’s eyes as he lay on the wood looking up. I attempted to say sorry son, but this is what God had commanded me to do. It was a test of faith for me and also my son’s test—a test of obedience.

I looked down. I looked at my hand. I looked at the altar, the wood and living body on it. This doesn’t make sense I said. I spoke tender saying, “I love you Isaac” with tears coming down my eyes. And I heard my son say, “Father, I love you too.” Would you tell mother that I love her too? She is a great mother.” Chocking now for words, as tears shadowed my eyes, I spoke softly, and you will tell her son”

I held the knife tighter, raised it higher (lift the knife high) and it glistened against the fire. I took a deep breath for as long as I could and began to lower my shaking hands to slice Isaac’s throat. And then, out of nowhere, the voice vibrated in my ears as an earthquake, “STOP!” The knife came to a halt. In the split of a second before the execution God provided a solution. God spoke again, “Abraham, Abraham, I know that you fear Me, your son will not die” In an instant the knife fell to the ground and I bowed down and embraced my son in my arms and unloosed him from the wood and the altar. As I lifted him up, there not far from us was a ram stuck in the thicket. Isaac and I took the ram and sacrificed it at the altar in thankgiving to the Lord for what He has done. That day God constructed a nation.

But this is not the entire story. I speak to you today; I look from beyond the Jordan, the everlasting life of eternity. Remember what I said to my son the day he asked, “Where is the sacrifice?” I responded, “God will provide.” Indeed, God did. He sacrificed a lamb—His very own son for the sins of the world.

I, Abraham the father of the Nation that God would raise up from as good as dead man, wouldn’t be permitted to offer my son as a sacrifice, yet He who is the Father of all nations, offered the greatest and most precious gift—His beloved son—the LAMB of God. God in love and mercy and grace provided a solution for humanity. And He constructed an altar for the sacrifice. It was mot made out of stone or brick, but out of wood. On the same hill of Moriah, God gave His son’s life for me, Isaac and all people.

This is the God who in Grace gave me a son to fill my heart with joy, is here today to assure you of the gift of His Son that not only fills our hearts with joy, but more importantly removes every stain of sin and give us eternal life. I share this story with you because it needs to be told. When you see others tell them you met the Construction man.

(Abraham exits without saying a word).