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1 Year Lectionary – Third Wednesday in Advent – Wednesday, December 15, 2021 | Pr. Chris Rosebrough

Welcome to the Teaching Ministry of Kongsvinger Lutheran Church. Kongsvinger is a beacon for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and is located on the plains of Northwestern Minnesota. We proclaim Christ and Him crucified for our sins and salvation by grace through faith alone, and now, here’s a message from Pastor Chris Rosebrough:

Time Stamp	Transcript
0:22	The holy gospel according
0:29	to saint john the 11th chapter now a certain man was ill lazarus of bethany of the village of mary and her
0:36	sister martha and it was mary who anointed the lord with ointment and wiped his feet with
0:42	her hair whose brother lazarus was ill so the sisters sent to him saying lord
0:48	him whom you love is ill but when Jesus heard it he said this illness does not lead to death it is for
0:55	the glory of god so that the son of man may be glorified through it now Jesus loved martha and her sister
1:02	and lazarus so when he heard that lazarus was ill he stayed two days longer in the place
1:08	where he was then after this he said to the disciples let us go to judea again
1:14	the disciples said to him rabbi the jews were just now seeking to stone you and are you going there again
1:20	Jesus answered are there not 12 hours in the day if anyone walks in the day he does not
1:27	stumble because he sees the light of this world but if anyone walks in the night he
1:32	stumbles because the light is not in him after saying these things he said to them our friend lazarus has fallen
1:38	asleep but i go to awaken him the disciples said him lord if he has fallen asleep he will recover
1:45	now Jesus had spoken of his death but they thought that he meant taking rest and sleep
1:50	then Jesus told them plainly lazarus has died and for your sake i am glad that i was
1:56	not there so that you may believe but let us go to him so thomas called the twin said to his
2:03	fellow disciples let us also go that we may die with him now when Jesus came he found that
2:09	lazarus had been already in the tomb four days bethany was near jerusalem about two miles off and many of the jews
2:16	had come to martha and mary to console them concerning their brother so when martha heard that Jesus was
2:23	coming she went and met him but mary remained seated in the house martha said to Jesus
2:30	lord if you had been here my brother would not have died but even now i know that whatever you
2:35	ask from god god will give you Jesus said to her your brother will rise
2:40	again martha said to him i know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day
2:46	Jesus said to her i am the resurrection in the life whoever believes in me though he die yet shall he live
2:53	and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die do you believe this
2:59	she said to him yes lord i believe that you are the Christ the son of god who is
3:04	coming into the world when she had said this she went and called her sister mary saying in private
3:11	the teacher is here and is calling for you and when she heard it she rose quickly
3:16	and went to him now Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where martha had met him
3:23	when the jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw mary rise quickly and go out they
3:29	followed her support supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there now when mary came to where Jesus was
3:36	and saw him she fell at his feet saying to him lord if you had been here my brother
3:42	would not have died when Jesus saw her weeping and the jews who had come with her also weeping
3:49	he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled and he said where have you laid him
3:55	they said to him lord come and see Jesus wept
4:01	so the jews said see how he loved him but some of them said could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have
4:07	also kept this man from dying then Jesus deeply moved again came to the tomb
4:12	it was a cave and a stone lay against it Jesus said take away the stone
4:18	martha the sister of the dead man said to him lord by this time there will be an odor for he has been dead for four
4:23	days Jesus said to her did i not tell you that if you believed you would see the
4:28	glory of god so they took away the stone Jesus lifted up his eyes and said father i thank you
4:34	that you have heard me i knew that you always hear me but i said this on account of the people standing around
4:41	that they may believe that you sent me and when he had said these things he cried out with a loud voice lazarus come
4:48	out and the man who had died came out his hands and his feet bound with linen
4:53	strips and his face wrapped with a cloth Jesus said to them und bind him and let
5:02	him go many of the jews therefore who had come with mary and had seen what he did
5:08	believed in him in the name of Jesus amen all right a little bit of a tough
5:15	concept here have you all ever been told something to be true by somebody well-meaning
5:22	but when they’ve told you the thing that they thought would really help you turned out that what they told you is
5:28	flat out false it’s a little annoying um i’ll give you
5:34	an example uh in our day and age and maybe it goes back to time immemorial we are told
5:41	real men do not cry real men do not cry i’m beginning to
5:47	think that sinful men are really poor definers of what a real man is
5:54	or isn’t in fact i would note that in our text
5:59	today as we consider the incarnation i would like to posit this idea
6:05	Jesus is the most real man we’ve ever seen in human history
6:10	adam had it for a bit if you would but blew the whole thing so it’s hard to
6:16	give him any credit along those lines you want to know what humanity looks like you want to know what patriarchy
6:22	looks like you look at Jesus Christ he’s a man’s man and he is the one who
6:28	loves his bride so dearly that he lays down his life for her that he clothes
6:34	her in his righteousness that he washes away her sins he is truly a man’s man you want to know
6:41	what manhood looks like what it looks like to be a real man you look at Christ bleeding suffering dying on the cross
6:50	so that his bride can be forgiven reconciled pardon clothed and splendor a
6:56	man’s man if you would it’s in that regard then that we consider
7:01	first a text that we may have heard uh one other time where Jesus wept apart
7:07	from our gospel text for today and that’s in the gospel of luke chapter 19.
7:13	and the context here is actually quite interesting if you consider the implications of it how many times have
7:20	you heard somebody complain or grumble that somehow god is so unloving so
7:27	unkind so mean so despicable that he would dare judge human beings and send
7:33	upon them death or destruction or judge them or whatever right and so they look at the god of the old testament as
7:40	somehow he’s a big old meanie grumpy pants and you can’t really trust that god because he well he sent the children
7:48	of israel to slaughter those poor canaanites those innocent people and and
7:53	no loving god would do such a thing
7:59	you have no idea what god’s like none whatsoever now it is true that god acts in judgment
8:07	that is not what god is like he does this because he’s exhausted
8:14	every possible way to be reconciled with those who have rebelled against him and when we look at
8:20	luke 19 starting at verse 41 as Jesus is drawing near to jerusalem
8:26	he’s heading in to bleed and die for your sins and mine it says when he drew near to the city he
8:33	wept over it
8:38	we’ve all seen weeping right weeping isn’t just the little dobbing you know you’ve got a little moisture
8:44	coming out of your eyes oh no no i i no no don’t worry my eyes are just a little dry that’s all
8:50	no weeping can’t be hidden weeping is something that people take notice of weak weeping involves sobbing weeping
8:58	involves at times uncontrollable noises
9:03	and blubbering is this any way for a man to behave
9:08	yes and consider then Jesus what he says here
9:14	is well it reveals to us the heart of god and how it is so loathsome for him when
9:21	he acts in judgment listen to what Christ said
9:26	o would that you even now had known on this day the things that make for peace
9:34	but now they’re hidden from your eyes for the days will come upon you when your enemies will set up a barricade
9:39	around you surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground you and
9:46	your children within you and they will not leave one stone upon another because you did not know the time of your
9:53	visitation does that sound like a god who is just chomping at the bit
10:00	to act in judgment you know i remember when my dad would spank me and say that
10:07	proverbially stupid thing this is going to hurt you more than it hurts me
10:12	i never believed it with my dad but you know what i believe it with god i believe it with Christ
10:19	he wept over jerusalem wept that she remained impenitent wept
10:24	that she wouldn’t hear his words wept that she didn’t see the time of their of her visitation god himself was in her
10:33	midst and they behaved like the devil
10:38	in fact to Christ’s crucifixion while he was on trial before he was crucified
10:44	pilate asks what shall i do with this one Jesus the king of the jews
10:49	crucify him what does pilate do coward that he is washes his hands and says your blood his
10:57	blood be on you what do they say well his blood be on us and on our children
11:03	now we recognize that what we meant for evil Christ worked for good
11:10	but what Christ works for good it’s only for those who believe
11:16	without faith it’s impossible to please god and so we in this regard then
11:23	consider our gospel text we won’t reread the entirety of it but you’ll note that
11:30	lazarus has died Christ got word that he was sick and Christ cools his heels for
11:35	several days isn’t that like god hello
11:40	can you hear my prayers up there don’t you know i’m suffering i could die
11:46	yeah yeah i know i know and he does nothing
11:52	but you’ll note that he already said ahead of time this will not lead to death it will be for the glory of god
11:57	so when Jesus came he found that lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days bethany was near jerusalem about two
12:04	miles off and many of the jews who had come to martha and married to console them concerning the brother so when
12:09	martha heard that Jesus was coming she went out to meet him but mary
12:16	remained seated in the house one of the things i love a little minor detail is that if you remember when Jesus went
12:22	to their house right it was martha who was the one who was clanging the dishes
12:28	who was making a fuss in there practically looking outside the door saying to her sister mary get in here
12:35	and help me and what was she doing sitting at the feet of Jesus doing nothing
12:41	right and so she comes and make my sister get up and help me
12:47	and what does Jesus say oh martha martha you’re troubled anxious about
12:53	many things but one thing is necessary and what
12:58	and what mary is doing will not be taken from her right it’s a great picture if you would of the
13:06	all the anxiety of trying to impress god with your good works as opposed to sitting at his feet and hearing him but
13:11	apparently that had such a huge impression on her that rebuke of Jesus
13:17	which was necessary right Jesus had to mansplain a few things to
13:23	her but she took the lesson
13:28	she took the lesson and here at the death of her brother martha
13:34	now is the one man she stopped what she was doing and she
13:41	listened to Jesus it shows in what she says so martha said to Jesus lord if you had been here my brother would not have died
13:48	true but listen to the but but even even now i know that whatever you ask
13:53	from god god will give you that’s faith and Jesus said to her your brother will
13:59	rise again i know i know that he’ll rise again in the resurrection in the last day
14:05	i stopped i listened i heard i believe it’s such a great redemption story if
14:11	you think about it right the pot clanger to the confessor of the truth regarding the resurrection
14:17	so Jesus said to her beautiful words i am the resurrection and the life the resurrection isn’t an
14:24	event life is not some abstract concept the resurrection is Jesus life is Jesus
14:31	apart from him there is no life and then he says whoever believes in me though he died yet shall he live and
14:37	everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die do you believe this
14:45	every time this text comes around in the series a in the three-year lectionary
14:51	i point out that i’ve presided at the funeral
14:57	funerals of kong’s winger members and if god gives me more years here i’m
15:03	pretty sure i’ll be conducting more right so how can Jesus say
15:09	they will never die i always point out does Jesus ever lie
15:15	never not even once what he’s saying is true how i have no idea i just trust him
15:22	so she said to him yes lord i believe that you are the Christ the son of god who is coming into the world
15:28	and when she had said this she went and she called her sister mary mary the one who sat at the feet of Jesus who
15:34	wouldn’t even help her sister with the hors d’oeuvres or or his divorce as my wife would say right
15:42	she came to mary in private said the teacher’s here he’s calling you so she heard it
15:47	she rose quickly and went to him now Jesus had not come into the village
15:53	but was still in the place where martha had met him and when the jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw mary rise
15:59	quickly and go out they followed her supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there now when mary came to
16:06	where Jesus had saw him she fell at his feet saying lord if you had been here my
16:11	brother would not have died but there’s no butt here she’s truly truly in mourning
16:20	and Jesus saw her weeping and the jews who had come with him were also weeping
16:26	he was deeply moved and and here’s the issue
16:31	is that when you read this in the greek imbrama oh my
16:37	he was deeply moved the implication of imbrama oh my in the greek
16:43	is that Jesus is angry he’s displeased
16:50	in an angry way which kind of leads to the question
16:56	what on earth is he angry about it’s so clear in the greek um
17:01	you know it’s just hard to pull it over into english so listen to how it goes Jesus saw her
17:07	weeping the jews who had come with her also weeping he was ember oh my in his
17:12	spirit greatly displeased angered greatly troubled at whom
17:19	mary that doesn’t make sense the jews who were with her who were also
17:25	weeping no
17:31	he was deeply moved by just how wrecked everything is
17:38	this isn’t the world he created this is the world we created
17:45	at the end of the sixth day god said everything was tolvema oh very good
17:51	but we listened to the serpent we traded paradise
17:56	for the shot of being gods ourselves and we’ve come up woefully short we’ve lost paradise we’ve lost god
18:04	we’ve gained death Jesus is deeply moved he’s displeased he’s angry at the whole
18:12	mess not at the people at the wreck and here’s where we have to
18:18	point something out this is the consequence of our sin this is the consequence of our rebellion
18:26	but scripture says god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him
18:32	will not perish but will have everlasting life Jesus is the man who weeps over the city
18:40	that will not repent and will ultimately face god’s judgment and he weeps that they receive god’s wrath rather
18:47	than mercy the same Jesus is deeply moved by how absolutely wrecked
18:54	humanity is the creation is how the whole thing is
18:59	groaning in anticipation of the revealing of the sons of god it’s nothing like what he made it to be
19:06	and in this world that we live in people suffer they get sick they die
19:14	there are children who have lost their parents there are parents who have lost their children
19:20	there are deep relationships that we have that are torn
19:25	apart by death and each and every one of us has death stalking us
19:31	you can see him hiding off in the corner somewhere and we’re just wondering when he’s going to pounce next
19:38	he’s ruined you satan’s ruined me
19:45	and this is not how he meant it to be and Jesus is angry
19:50	but he’s not angry at us he’s angry at everything that has happened to us
19:57	and like a man’s man he weeps
20:04	over the whole thing and he asked where have you laid him
20:10	come and see and Jesus a second time in scripture weeps
20:21	those who saw it didn’t quite know what to make of it i thought real men don’t cry
20:29	looks to me like they do see how he loved him
20:36	some said couldn’t not he who opened the eyes the blind man had also kept this man from dying
20:43	you know it’s in this regard that man i think about some of the brutally
20:50	horrible things that i’ve heard that Christians have said to other Christians
20:55	those who are suffering from illnesses
21:01	or they’ve been in accidents or they’ve had their health taken from them because of one consequence or another
21:10	Christians say horrible things like if you just believed enough
21:16	then you would have your healing if you just had enough faith if you just
21:24	tithe if you just did more if you just if you just if you just then god would
21:32	what did lazarus do to be raised from the dead
21:38	he’s not mentioned as an as a tither here or even as a
21:44	great man of faith that’s in fact the text right here is super clear you
21:50	know the only thing that lazarus was doing was the same
21:55	same thing that well corpses do and have been doing for a long time
22:01	decomposing how much effort does that take how much
22:06	faith does it take to decompose they’re already talking about the odor and the stench but see that’s the thing
22:14	that’s how Jesus finds all of us scripture is clear we were conceived and
22:19	born dead in trespasses and sins but god sent forth the good news in the mouth of
22:26	the apostles and then the pastors after them who have proclaimed it to you and
22:31	to me they’ve been sent to baptize and make disciples of all nations they are
22:36	sent to do these things by god himself and where the gospel reaches god the holy spirit works and finds spiritual
22:44	corpses zombies the walking dead that’s what we all are by nature
22:49	and god has mercy and some
22:56	are raised to life they are vivified
23:03	they are regenerated by the mercy of god through the means of grace
23:12	so could not he who opened the eyes of the blind men also have kept this man from dying of
23:17	course he could but we’ve all seen Jesus
23:23	heal the sick we’ve seen him give sight to the blind
23:29	but giving life to a dead man and it’s in this context that Jesus said i am the resurrection in the life
23:36	and martha’s the one who confessed that he will be raised on the last day on the day of the resurrection
23:42	so the text says Jesus then deeply moved again ambra oh my
23:47	deeply moved angered displeased i always like to picture this as like back in the
23:52	day when i was watched cartoons when i was a kid like popeye the sailor man it kind of seems like a little bit weird
23:58	but remember you knew that popeye was getting ready for do some business to put a world of hurt on brutus when he
24:05	opened up his can of spinach right that’s what’s going on right here
24:10	Jesus is like opening up his can of spinach he’s deeply moved and he comes
24:16	to the tomb and you can almost see him rolling up his sleeves
24:23	and he said take away the stone
24:29	now martha needs to speak a little sense the sister of the dead man said to him lord
24:38	there’s going to be an odor he stinketh he’s been dead for four days
24:45	and i don’t think Jesus turns on her hard you can just see him looking at her going
24:51	did i not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of god
24:57	a little bit of a rebuke and maybe like
25:02	Jesus’s mother in john 2 where she says you do whatever he says you can see martha kind of giving the
25:09	nod all right go ahead so they took away the stone Jesus lifted up his eyes and he said
25:15	father i thank you i thank you that you’ve heard me i knew that you always hear me but i
25:22	said this on account of the people standing around so that they
25:27	so that they may believe that you sent me and when they said these things
25:32	he cried out with a loud voice lazarus come
25:38	out and the the reality of this is kind of interesting
25:44	the tomb where lazarus was laid is a multi-storied tomb he was on the bottom floor
25:50	all right and they didn’t have the benefit of a spiral staircase so there’s a little bit of time
25:58	in between going on here lazarus come out and you can almost hear
26:03	the crowd kind of murmuring is he going to do it can Jesus do this can he really raise a guy from the dead yet he says
26:09	what’s going to happen here they’re all looking and they’re all staring they’re all listening
26:15	right and you can only imagine the gasp when lazarus comes out and he’s still
26:22	bound hand and foot it’s almost comedic if you think about it poor lazarus going
26:33	right and everyone going ah
26:41	and the text says the man who had died came out his hands
26:46	and his feet bound with linen strips his face wrapped with a cloth
26:53	and listen to the words Jesus said to him them unbind him and let him
27:01	go
27:08	that same Jesus one of our hymns that we sing in easter
27:14	Christ Jesus lay in death strong’s bands oh
27:21	Jesus who had lazarus unbound from death himself was bound
27:27	beaten flogged crucified
27:34	suffering with every breath six hours three in the sunlight
27:41	three in the dark bearing your sin and mind
27:47	so that we could be unbound from death and Jesus doesn’t do this
27:52	dispassionately he doesn’t play that stupid game while i’m a man so i better act like i’m all
27:59	strong and stuff Jesus
28:05	truly can sympathize with our weakness
28:11	since we have such a great high priest who has passed through the heavens Jesus
28:16	the son of god let us hold fast to our confession for we do not have a high priest who is
28:21	unable to sympathize with our weaknesses but who one who in every respect has been tempted as we are and yet is
28:27	without sin and i would even add to this text although i can’t really add to it
28:33	just look at the cross references not only was Jesus tempted in every way that we are and yet is without sin Jesus
28:40	knows exactly what it means to suffer
28:46	and suffer he did not for any wrong that he did but for every wrong you and i have ever
28:53	done his hands and his feet pierced
28:58	crucifixion being a grueling process agonizing excruciating
29:05	he knows not only what it’s like to be tempted but he also knows what it is exactly like to experience
29:12	excruciating pain and yet he never flagged
29:18	he never said uncle yes he wept
29:24	but he did this so that you and i can be unbound so that you and i can live
29:29	it’s in that regard then that you can almost hear the beginning strains of that glorious hymn sung by
29:37	the angels glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth the
29:42	announcement of the angel proclaiming to humanity unto you is born this day in
29:47	the city of David a savior Christ the lord
29:53	because that’s exactly what we need and he’s a man’s man
30:00	and he wept in the name of Jesus amen

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