“She Was Betrothed to a Man” Luke 1.27 Advent 2A, Dec. ‘25

 

1.      Grace to you and peace from God our Heavenly Father and from our coming Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Advent has a way of slowing us down—if we let it. It invites us to step back, breathe deeply, and ponder the quiet wonders that led to the world’s salvation. Last week we considered the angel’s astonishing announcement to Mary. Today the Holy Spirit shifts our attention ever so briefly to the man standing beside her: “a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David.” (Luke 1:27) Just a few words—but, my, what a world of grace sits behind them. And so today we ponder this simple truth: We can learn more about our Savior Jesus by learning something about Mary’s husband. The message today is taken from Luke 1:27 and is entitled, “She Was Betrothed to a Man,” dear brothers and sisters in Christ.

2.      Joseph the Foster Father Who Stood Beside the Child. Scripture doesn’t give us volumes about Joseph, but what is said is enough to warm the heart. He’s often pictured as older—gray around the edges, maybe a little bald on top. Whether that’s accurate or not, we do know he was established enough to support a wife and family. “Is not this the carpenter’s son?” the crowds later asked in Mt 13:55. And carpentry was no hobby; that was Joseph’s trade, his livelihood.

3.      We sometimes assume Joseph was poor because Mary laid Jesus in a manger. But maybe—just maybe—their long trek from Nazareth to Bethlehem simply took more time than they planned. After all, Joseph couldn’t jump on Expedia and book the “Bethlehem Best Western.” By the time they rolled into town, everything was full. That’s how travel still works—especially if you’ve ever tried to book a hotel during a youth gathering. But what matters most is this: Joseph was present in the life of Jesus.

4.      Joseph took the boy Jesus to Jerusalem at age twelve. He taught Him the things faithful fathers teach their sons—how to work with His hands, how to read the Scriptures, how to pray, how to treat His mother with honor, how to walk uprightly in the fear of the Lord. What a beautiful thought: the eternal Son of God learning to use a hammer from Joseph. And in all of this, Joseph reminds us that Jesus entered a real human home, with real human parents, in a real community. He grew up in our skin and among our daily tasks—so that He might redeem every part of our human life.

5.      Joseph the Son of David. Luke adds that Joseph was “of the house of David,” and that one line sends a bright, golden thread running through all of Scripture. God had promised a Savior to Eve—One who would crush the serpent’s head (Gen. 3:15). He promised Abraham that all nations would be blessed through his descendant (Gen 12:3). He promised Judah that the scepter would not depart from his line. And finally, He promised King David: “I will raise up your offspring… and I will establish His kingdom forever.” (2 Sam 7:12–13)

6.      For the Messiah to stand legitimately in David’s royal line, He needed a father from that line. And so the Lord chose Joseph—not merely as a guardian and provider, but as the earthly foster father whose lineage would place Jesus squarely in the household of David. Now picture Jesus, Mary’s holy Child, sitting at Joseph’s table—this Child who is both David’s Son and David’s Lord. No wonder Gabriel said, “He will be great.”

7.      Have you ever met someone truly great? Someone whose very presence straightens your posture and sharpens your thoughts? If a President or King of a nation can do that, how much more the King of kings! Yet this King stepped down from heaven, entering Joseph’s home, entering Mary’s womb, entering our world—to lift us up to His kingdom that shall have no end. And yes, as with David, this kingdom will wage war—not with swords, but with the Word of God. The church is assaulted, mocked, marginalized. Pastors grow weary. Congregations grow small. But the kingdom stands because its King Jesus stands, risen from the dead and ruling at the right hand of the Father. And in Him, dear friends, you stand as well.

8.      Joseph the Chaste and Faithful Bridegroom. Mary and Joseph were betrothed—a word deeper than our word “engaged.” A betrothal was legally binding. To break it required divorce. Yet Joseph remained chaste, honoring Mary’s virginity “until she had given birth to a son.” (Mt 1:25). What a contrast with our age. The old standards of chastity have crumbled. Engagements are casual. Couples easily live together without marriage. And when a pastor gently speaks God’s Word about the Sixth Commandment, the world sometimes reacts like a startled cat—claws out, hair raised, and all reason flying right out the window.

9.      But as God’s people, we must be honest about sin. Scripture can’t whisper where God shouts. Sexual sin is serious. It damages hearts, relationships, families, and faith. And unrepented sin—whether sexual or otherwise—destroys eternally. But, thanks be to God, where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more. Repentance opens the floodgates of mercy. Jesus’ forgiveness is inexhaustible. The Savior born of the Virgin came precisely for sinners who fall and fail and need a new beginning. And in His design for marriage, God has given a beautiful gift: the union of husband and wife, the freedom of marital intimacy, and the blessing of children—yes, “lots and lots of babies,” as our Lutheran forebears cheerfully said!

10.   The Bridegroom Who Comes for His Bride. Joseph guarded Mary chastely and faithfully. He remained steadfast because God Himself had bound them together. And here the Holy Spirit lifts our eyes to a greater Bridegroom. From eternity, Christ has been betrothed to His Bride—the Church. He loved her. He washed her in Baptism. He redeemed her with His blood.
He bound Himself to her with an everlasting covenant that cannot be broken. (Eph 5:25–26).

11.   And now we wait—like those virgins in Jesus’ parable (Matthew 25:1–13). Some keep their lamps lit with the oil of God’s Word. Others grow careless. But the Bridegroom is coming. His shout will ring out. The doors of the feast will open wide. And dear friends, because you belong to Christ, you will be there. When the world collapses, you will stand firm. When the nations tremble, you will lift up your heads. When the unbelieving flee in terror, you will run toward your Savior. For on that day, Mary’s Son Jesus—protected by Joseph, born of the Virgin, crucified, risen, and returning—will look you in the eyes and call you faithful because He was faithful for you. And you will hear those beautiful words that echo through all eternity: “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Master.” (Mt 25:21) Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, until life everlasting. Amen.

 

 

 

“Practice Prophetic Patience!” James 5.7-11 Advent 3A, Dec. ’25

 

1.                   Please pray with me.  May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock, and our Redeemer.  Amen.  The contrast between the first and second readings on this Third Sunday of Advent couldn’t be stronger. Isaiah chapter 35 paints a picture of the parched land exulting, the desert blooming, and the whole earth rejoicing. In contrast, James encourages the early Christians to stand firm, not to judge one another, but to bear each other’s faults and failings with patience. Isaiah has a theology of exuberance, James a theology of patient endurance.  The message today is entitled, “Practice Prophetic Patience!” Dear brothers and sister sin Christ.

2.                   As Christians, we’re invited to live fully in both these realities. We’re invited into the paradoxical place of joy and sorrow, of a grace-filled calling and the daily grind of duty; of the earth bursting with abundance and the dry-as-dust times when the farmer can barely eke out a living.  This Third Sunday of Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday, a command to “rejoice.”  In some Lutheran Churches throughout the world, a pink candle on their Advent wreath points to this. Even in this repentant season of preparation and expectation, we’re commanded to rejoice. Don’t get too serious about your fasting and your prayers, because the birth of Christ is just around the corner.

3.                   Many of us grew up with the phrase “Patience is a virtue.” It comes to mind as we read the opening words of the text from James: “Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord.” James compares the patience he encourages to the patience of the farmer who waits for “the early and the late rains.” Then, as the passage ends at verse 10, James connects patience with suffering: “As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.” What do patience, suffering, and farming have to do with one another and with the season of Advent?  How is James calling us to practice prophetic patience?

4.                   In what circumstances is it appropriate to urge people to be patient? When is patience a virtue? Certain kinds of work require patience. The woodworker refinishing a piece of furniture, the jewelry repairer fixing a broken clasp, the quilter carefully stitching fabric, the accountant running trial balances to make sure all records are accurate: all of these must work patiently, because accuracy is demanded by the work they do. Learning various things often requires patience: years of finger exercises precede playing Bach or Mozart; time on the driving range is needed to master a good golf swing; memorization and repetition are required to learn any new language. All of us understand this kind of patience—the “practice makes-perfect” kind.

5.                   Patience can also be a virtue in situations where waiting is required and where one is powerless to change the circumstances: sitting in the car on the freeway during rush hour, standing in the security line at the airport, waiting in the checkout line at the grocery store at 5:00 p.m. with a checker who is learning how to run the cash register. In these situations, there’s a delay. Try as we may, we can exert no control over some important factors in our lives. You can either get angry and feel your blood pressure rise, or you can be patient. This aggravating wait will be familiar to everyone as well.

6.                   Some people may even tell us about how nostalgia and warmth in this joyous holiday season bring out the best in humanity. But don’t we also notice how the stress of these hectic days brings out the worst in human nature? People embarrass themselves and the rest of us by drinking to excess at holiday parties. They push and shove through the stores. And when you get behind these people in the checkout line, they take forever, don’t they? Fumbling with their wallets, talking with the cashier about things unrelated to the business at hand, completely unconcerned about the rest of us who are held up behind them.

7.                   So James urges us to practice prophetic patience while many people grow impatient of waiting (v 7a).  So many get distracted by the busyness of their lives and the pleasures of the world.  Jesus loses his appeal. Jesus seems so far away that it’s easy to lose him as we live our hectic lives. In the parable of the sower, Jesus warned us that this would happen: “The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures” (Lk 8:14). Just before our sermon text, James utters this stern warning to the rich: “You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence” (5:5).  The things of this world, of immediate gratification, not eternal things, things worth waiting for, are consuming them. And even within James’s congregation, there are growing signs of impatience: members grumbling against one another (v 9a), impatient with each others’ faults, placing blame, groaning as if their fellow believers were simply intolerable to be around. Though we live by the Spirit, we’re still sinners and get on each other’s nerves.

8.                   Some even abandon the faith altogether. “Oh, well, I can always repent later” is the attitude of many. “I’ve got plenty of time,” they think, having long ago lost any awareness that they’re waiting for a returning Lord. Many leave Jesus behind in their pursuit of immoral pleasures. Those who do face God’s judgment: an eternity of punishment in hell.

9.               But, James calls us to practice prophetic patience. As the farmer must be patient waiting for the harvest, so we must be patient. The farmer knows that God will bring a harvest in due time. “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Is 55:10–11 ESV). And the rains do come—the autumn rains, the spring rains. They do come.

10.               At least for the farmer they usually come. As we wait for Jesus, we have watering and feeding that are even more certain. We have God’s grace, given in the means of grace. By God’s grace, strengthened by his Word and Sacraments, we patiently continue on with our faith. We believe and trust in Jesus as the one and only Savior from sin and eternal death. Jesus is the only one who can save us and give us eternal life. He suffered and died on his cross so that we could have forgiveness of our sins and be restored with God. No one else can do for us what he has. No one else can save! We cling to his cross, for he alone is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one will come to the Father except by him.   Like a seed, Jesus was planted in the ground by burial after his atoning death on the cross. Then, like a dead seed that is watered, he sprang to life in his resurrection on the third day. He’s the firstfruits of those who die in the faith and await the final harvest: resurrection of the dead. 

11.               James tells us to practice prophetic patience because he points us to the second coming of Christ (ESV): “Be patient . . . until the coming of the Lord” (v 7). “The coming of the Lord is at hand” (v 8). “The Judge is standing at the door” (v 9).  When Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead, he’ll gather us into his eternal Kingdom like a good farmer harvesting his wheat. In the new heaven and the new earth, there will no more sin or crying or pain. In view of this great day that is soon to come, the Lord strengthens us by his Word.  That means living together as brothers and sisters who await the very same glorious day. Not living selfishly, immorally, for earthly riches and pleasures. Not grumbling against one another. Christ lives in you by faith, and he works powerfully in you, influencing your thoughts and actions. He moves you to see others in a good light and not complain about them. In this way we love God so that we love our neighbor.

12.              Jesus has made a promise to all of us: “I shall return.” He will keep that promise. He will return. We don’t know exactly when, but our text assures us that his coming is near.   Until our Lord Jesus returns, you and I practice prophetic patience. We will keep building ourselves up in the faith through God’s Word and Sacraments. By God’s grace, we will endeavor to stop grumbling about others. And, by God’s grace, we will continue to proclaim the Gospel so that many more people will be found in the faith on the day when Jesus returns. We practice prophetic patience waiting for our Lord Jesus’ return. Amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, until life everlasting. Amen.

 

“Introducing Mary” Luke 1.26 Advent Mid 1 Dec. ‘25

 

1.           Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Heavenly Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. This Advent, we are going to do something different: a sermon series about the blessed virgin Mary. Not exactly. The main focus throughout will be on Mary’s Son, God’s Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, he who gained human flesh and blood from his mother so that he could go to the cross and sacrifice himself for you to take away your sins. So, as we get to know Mary, we’re going to learn about Jesus. And How Does the Bible Introduce Mary?

2.           Who was Mary? The Bible tells us a lot about her, especially in Luke chapter 1. The first thing we see is the angel Gabriel being sent from God: “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth” (Luke 1:26). You probably know that the word angel is from the Greek word that means “messenger.” Gabriel has a message. He’s been sent. Where is he going? Nazareth. Angels live in eternity, in the presence of God. They don’t visit us very often. When they do, it’s important. So, this angel leaves heaven and breaks into our world of space and time to visit a certain person. This same Gabriel had been sent to the prophet Daniel centuries before to tell him the time had come for the captives in Babylon to return home. Gabriel was on a similar mission here, for the time had come for the Messiah to appear and set free all who are in bondage to sin. It had to be this way, for the Messiah must be a flesh-and-blood human sacrifice to take away the sins of the world.

3.           Now, Nazareth is a town way up north from the important places with important people like Jerusalem. It’s in the region called Galilee. “Galilee of the Gentiles” was the derogatory phrase for it. The Jews from there were a little different. They talked with an accent. You might call them the hillbillies of their day.

4.           But isn’t this just like God?—to make something out of nothing and change the world from one of its most obscure corners. Like the angel himself says, “With God, nothing is impossible” (cf Lk 1:37). He who created the sea could change it to support the feet of Jesus—and Peter! He who created the law of gravity could suspend it so Jesus could ascend into heaven. And he who imposed death upon sinful mankind could reverse it so that Lazarus could come back to life, and so that Jesus, God’s Son, could rise up from the grave after dying for our sins, so that each of you who believe in him as Mary did may live in the sure hope of eternal life. “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” (1 Cor 15:55).

5.           So Gabriel is sent to a woman named Mary. How old is she? Doesn’t say. It says she is a virgin. That would mean she is a young woman of eligible age to be married. She was probably well brought up by her family in the religion of the Jews, and physically mature enough to bear children, and that she had not known a man in the carnal sense. This had been foretold by the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Is 7:14). She was a good Jewish girl in the sense that Abraham was the father of the Jews: “He believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (Gen 15:6). Mary believed in the promises of God, that one day he would send a Messiah, the Lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world. St. Paul says that a true Jew is one like Abraham, who lives by faith (Rom 2:28–29). We can assume this about young Mary, that she had heard the Scriptures read in the synagogue and believed them. And surely she was praying for the Messiah who was to come.

6.           Such was the prayer of every mother in Israel, for God had promised a man born of woman to destroy the serpent. In fact, it is possible that when Cain was born, Eve may have thought that he was the promised one. How wrong she was! It took many, many centuries and endless genealogies—in fact, this is why they were kept. Have you ever noticed how often in the Bible it’s the mother that names the child?

7.           Here is Gabriel in front of Mary. I suppose there were lots of virgins in Nazareth at that particular time, maybe even a few named Mary. But Gabriel was sent to this one particular virgin named Mary. Was there some virtue, some quality in her to attract the attention of the Lord? The Bible doesn’t say. The Bible does say that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That “all” means all, including Mary. We acknowledge her as a saint, for so she is. But like the rest of us Christians, she is simul iustus et peccator, “at the same time a saint and a sinner.” Just like the rest of us. So her appointment as theotokos, “God-bearer,” was by grace alone.

8.           People have a lot of strange ideas about Mary, especially in the Church of Rome—making her out to be things that she’s not, things the Bible doesn’t say about her, even things the Bible rules out. The Roman Church has this notion they call the “immaculate conception.” Not about Christ, who, of course, was born without sin. Nor applying it to Mary. It applies to Mary’s mother. This is so that the cycle of sin, which is passed from parents to children through the reproductive process, had to be broken. So for Mary to have been holy and the mother of Christ, Rome says, she herself had to be born without sin, which meant her mother had to conceive her without sin. So one story has Mary’s mother, Anne, conceiving her without sexual intercourse. No. Sorry. What about Anne’s mother before her, and so forth, like a hall of mirrors right back to the Garden of Eden? Paul, himself a saint and sinner, tells us in Romans 5, “Sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Rom 5:12).

9.           The pope also presents Christ as a stern, unforgiving judge who punishes sin and sends people to hell. If you want to approach him, you go through his mother who, supposedly unlike Christ, is soft and warm and welcoming. So you pray to Mary to get to Jesus. No again. Scripture says, “There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 2:5).

10.        Article XXI of the Augsburg Confession addresses this issue. We are to remember the saints and celebrate their lives as examples of Christian behavior. Lutheran Service Book lists August 15 as the saint’s day of St. Mary, Mother of Our Lord, among “Feasts and Festivals” (LSB, p xi). We name churches after saints. Luther himself was a pastor of the Church of St. Mary in Wittenberg, Germany. We honor the saints. But we don’t pray to them.

11.        There’s more I could add, but one thing I must mention. Apparently Pope John Paul II was this close to declaring Mary co-redemptrix along with Christ. Thank God the cardinals talked him out of it! If he had done so, the Roman Catholic Church would no longer be Christian. We pray for our Catholic brothers and sisters in Christ, and for the pope in Rome. He has ignored us for 500 years, but we continue to pray that he would listen to us and hear the Word of God.

12.        Mary was a human being like the rest of us. But she found favor with God, the angel said to her. She found favor the same way all the saints did: by grace alone. Take Noah, for example: “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord” (Gen 6:8). The King James Version uses the word “grace.” Same for Noah, same for Mary, same for the rest of us who are being redeemed. In the Small Catechism, Luther counsels us to pray to God as dear children ask their dear father. God loves you! He loves you so much that he sent his only-begotten Son to die for you. All by grace. Beautiful, one-sided grace that draws us to Jesus by Word and Sacrament. All glory to God alone!

13.        And all because of that Son, who’s the reason the Bible teaches us about Mary in the first place. The angel talks about this Son to be born to her. He is to be called Jesus. That’s the Aramaic form of the Hebrew name Yeshua or Joshua. You know, lots of people cling to rules and regulations. They like Moses, who laid down the Law. Dos and don’ts! But Moses, who represents the Law, never made it into the Promised Land. It was Joshua, a clear type of Christ, who led the people of Israel across the Jordan and into Canaan. In the same way, Jesus, whose name means “God saves,” did everything for our salvation—fulfilled all the dos and don’ts and then went to the cross for our didn’ts and dids—and gives us that salvation as a free gift.

14.        The angel goes on to say that Jesus will be great. Both true God and true man. You can’t get any greater than that! “The Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end” (Lk 1:32–33). And so it came to pass that Jesus was born of Mary, and all the angel’s words were fulfilled. Now Jesus rules and reigns over all things. His kingdom has come. You are in it! Amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, until life everlasting. Amen.