17. Third Sunday in Advent. I.
Lord, give us grace, that we
may understand thy word
and believe in thee. Amen.
Gospel Lesson, Matthew 11, 2-10. Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, and said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me. And, as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
❦
Jesus, the son of God and of Mary, who was born in Bethlehem, is in truth the Christ, and there is no other king and redeemer of our souls. Neither do we want any other; we need none other, for he is that perfect savior who helps us out of every trouble. In him the prophecies of the prophets concerning the Messiah have been fulfilled to the letter. He is become the least, and is the greatest; the poorest, and the richest; the most despised, but the most glorious. He enters into our nature, but transfigures it into godlike glory; he dies, but death has no part in him; he is the living one in all eternity. Here is Abel and his innocent blood, shed by a brother’s hand; here are the wisdom, sale, imprisonment, and the royal splendor of Joseph; here are the high priest, the lamb, and the blood which is carried into the sanctuary; here is Samuel with his triple office; here is David in his humiliation and then in his glory; here is Solomon, the prince of peace, who builds the temple of the Lord; here is the son of the virgin, of whom Isaiah spake, the child which is the eternal wonderful God; here is the suffering and dying, but again living servant of the Lord, written of in the 53rd chapter of that prophet; the hunted hart of the 22nd psalm of David; here are all the Scriptures. The eyes of the blind are opened and the ears of the deaf are unstopped; the lame man leaps as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sings with joy. The year of jubilee is come, the prisoners of death are set free. John, whom prophecy calls Elijah, goes before and prepares the way; the greatest of all the prophets is the herald of him who became the least of all.
We also experience on ourselves that Jesus is the true Savior. He has opened our eyes, so that we see our sin and know his merit, which takes it away. We see the death in ourselves, but know the life which vanquishes death, and feel the victory of love in our hearts. We hear the music of heaven in the gospel, and the spirit within us answers amen. We feel the cleansing grace of the blood of Jesus and the victorious power of his life in our hearts, so that we taste the peace of God, love our enemies, bear our sufferings, and give thanks for the daily cross. Will you say that this is not the work of the true Savior? We, who of ourselves can only be offended because of his suffering, still love this crucified form with love unspeakable, a thousand times more than all else in the world. We are tempted, and we sin; but we fly to him, and we find in his wounds our city of refuge; we are victorious over sin and death; they cannot touch us at the horns of the altar.
Blessed be the Lord Jesus, who came to the world and became our Savior; who comes to us and saves us; who shall come and set us free. Dear Lord, man us with firm faith when we fight our last battle with the devil in the agony of death. Amen.*
Let the earth now praise the Lord,
Who hath truly kept his word,
And the sinner’s help and friend
Now at last to us doth send.
What the fathers most desired,
What the prophet’s heart inspired,
What they longed for many a year,
Stands fulfilled in glory here.
[TLH 91, LSB 352, ELH 165; listen here]
18. Third Sunday in Advent. II.
Lord, make us
thy faithful servants. Amen.
Epistle Lesson, 1 Corinthians 4, 1-5. Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment; yea, I judge not mine own self. For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.
❦
John the Baptist was the servant and steward of Christ, and so are also all the legitimate and true preachers of the word of God; they are appointed of the Lord to administer his mysteries of the gospel. All who have been properly called to the office of the ministry are to be accounted servants of Christ, who have received the office from him and administer it in his stead. In themselves the ministers of the Word are only erring men, but their office exalts them, and the Lord makes them strong in their testimony concerning the truth. A servant of the Lord must go through many a conflict; the flesh is all the time weak and would like to be clothed in soft raiment. If he is a man of talent and has marked success in his work, he is tempted to fall into the sin of pride and vanity; if he is less richly endowed, or if his labor seems to have no visible results, he is prone to lose heart and sink into apathy. The Baptist calls himself the voice of Christ, and Paul says concerning himself: “I am nothing.” This is the spirit which is necessary, in order that a man may remain faithful.
Faithfulness is the one important requirement. The judgment of the Lord concerning us is of moment, but the judgment of men is not. The eye of God is true, while the eye of man is often deceived by mere outward appearances. On that day, when every man’s work shall be revealed by fire, much of what is regarded as gold will prove to be nothing but gilded hay and stubble. The Lord demands of us faithfulness, not brilliant exploits; diligence in the use of the talent entrusted to us, not splendid proofs of genius or of great talents. How beautiful are not those little flowers in the garden of God, which, instead of boastfully showing forth their loveliness, hide themselves beneath the others, but which can neither escape the eye of Heaven nor keep back their wealth of strong and sweet odors. Many an obscure country pastor and lowly teacher shall shine more brightly over yonder than famous bishops and scholars. Sincere love and genuine faithfulness count for more, than do any and all great talents.
Assist us by your prayers for us, ye believers, and by obedience to the word which we bring you from the Lord; in order that we may give account of our stewardship with joy, and not with grief. And do thou, Lord Jesus, help us by the light and power of thy Holy Spirit; give to us thy love, that we may serve thee with gladness and be in truth faithful stewards of the wonderful riches of thy house. Amen.*
O pour thy Spirit from on high!
Lord, thine appointed servants bless;
Thy promised power to each supply,
And clothe thy priests with righteousness.
And, when their work is finished here,
Let them in hope their charge resign;
Before the throne with joy appear,
And there with endless glory shine.
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.
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