Trinity Lutheran Church
Sugar Grove, Ohio
Sermons from Pastor Sovitzky
Sermon for Transfiguration Trinity and Trinity February 9, 2025 Text: Matthew 17:1-9 Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. These days, when you hear trans in Transfiguration the trans movement comes to mind. To be transfigured means to change in appearance. We hear trans today in the context of transgender. People who identify as trans sadly fall for the sinful lie that they can change being the men or women God created them to be. They think they can change their identity by changing their social presentation or undergoing surgeries. But humans cannot change their humanity. We can’t blur the lines and distinctions of God’s creation and transfigure ourselves though we try. You might look at Jesus’ transfiguration and say, “But wait a moment: doesn’t Jesus change? Isn’t He transformed? He goes from being a normal man to being full of light! And Moses and Elijah seem to be glowing too. If Jesus is so different in His glory, if He can transfigure Himself, then doesn’t it seem like we can change too? Can’t we transfigure ourselves?” Not quite. Jesus’ Transfiguration is not a blurring or changing of who He is. But at the Transfiguration Jesus sharpens the focus for His disciples so that who He is becomes even clearer to them. When Jesus shines forth, He’s not changing from being a man into God. Jesus is God. He’s revealing His divine glory, His holiness, His bright divinity in His body. Everything God is and does Jesus is and does. But He’s also man. And in order to save lost sinners from sin and death and all the misery of this fallen world, Jesus takes on human flesh. Although He is God in the flesh, He doesn’t reveal Himself as God in the flesh but veils His glory. He lives a lowly, humble life amidst mankind. He doesn’t show forth His glory for this purpose: He needs to go despised and rejected to the cross and die for us. After He is risen, He reveals His glory. When He returns again He will shine in the brightness of His glory. The Transfiguration is a little glimpse of who our Lord is. The Transfiguration offers a vision of the glory that will be revealed at the end of time. Everyone who repents and believes in Jesus Christ will be brought into glory with Him. It’s true that we will be changed when that happens, St Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15. The mortal will put on immortality and the corruptible incorruption. Like Moses and Elijah, all the righteous will shine like the sun. But our change into glory doesn’t mean that we’ll stop being human. It doesn’t mean that we’ll turn into angels or that we won’t be men and women. You’ll be sinless and undying and so glorious, but you’ll still be you. Moses is still Moses. Elijah is still Elijah, and you will really be you. The true you God created in your mother’s womb and redeemed from every sin by the blood of His Son and sanctified by the power of His Holy Spiri given in baptism. In glory, you’ll be more clearly and obviously and truly you in a way that you never were in this life. Like Jesus, we’ll not change into different creatures in the resurrection. But the focus will sharpen and everything will be clear in God’s presence, in His glory. In eternity, truth will shine forth clearly. Everything and everyone will be obviously just what or who they’re meant to be by the Creator who created and redeemed them. But the truth about who we are and what we’re supposed to be doing isn’t always so clear on this side of glory. That’s not because the truth doesn’t shine. Sin blinds the eyes and darkens the hearts to truth. The devil first tempted Adam and Eve to doubt God’s word. Did God really say don’t eat of the fruit? Is that command really good? Is it really true? Is it really clear? All sins on this earth follow that same twisted logic. Is it really true and obvious that men and women are different? Is that really good? Can’t we change from being a man to a woman or a woman to a man? But although sinful people try to change who they are or the way creation works, they can’t really change anything. Sinners can only destroy, efface, disfigure who they are or what things are meant to be. You can’t really change yourself into the opposite sex. You can only destroy your body through surgery and chemicals into something that resembles but is not what you want to be. What a horrible lie to follow. What misery and heartache and sorrow it brings! But there’s sin. In rebellion we think we can transfigure ourselves as we see fit. We can do what we want, change who we are. But it doesn’t work. God created us. We can’t recreate ourselves. We can only fall from glory into darkness, from innocence to guilt, from perfection into corruption, and at the end of that fall, we destroy ourselves. Sin seeks to obscure and twist and cloud God’s truth imprinted into all His works. That’s where ambiguity comes from. That’s why people think we can change who we are. Don’t fall for that temptation. When you want to do something in life you know is wrong, like caring about money instead of trusting God, skipping church to go have fun or get more work done, moving in with someone who’s not your spouse, losing your temper and shouting at coworkers, or whatever it might be, you’ll always justify what you want to do to yourself by saying, “Well, this time is special. The circumstance is really unusual. It’s just so unclear what to do. If other people were in my shoes, well, maybe they’d make other decisions, but who can say what’s right? Life’s messy, it’s all relative. God doesn’t have anything to say. He just wants me to do what’s best for me.” Not so! God’s truth does cut through our darkness and shines out clear. In eternity everything is clear. But it’s also clear here, too. Because God’s eternal, unchanging, un-lying, unerring word shines into our hearts in all its brilliant truth. When Jesus stands transfigured in glory on the mount, God the Father gives us this command: “This is my beloved Son; listen to Him.” And our glorious Lord Jesus speaks with brilliant clarity to us in His word, in the Scriptures of the new and old testaments. That’s why St Peter says in our epistle reading this morning, “We ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with Him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” The true words of Jesus shine from outside of you into the darkness of your sinful heart. They cut through all the cloudy thinking and dark desires that would lead you to obscure the truth and defile yourself in sins against the truth. So never kid yourself. God’s truth can be known. It is proclaimed. There really isn’t any wiggle room. We can’t change up to down or men into women. We can’t pretend that we’re justified in doing whatever we want in our lives because God has nothing to say about it. That way leads away from glory into death. Dear friends in Christ, the time will come when your heart will be free from sin and you will always remain steadfast in the truth. That’s when you’re called into glory to join the ranks of all the faithful, to stand beside Jesus with Moses and Elijah. But until that day, you’ve got to battle on and fight against the desires of your sinful flesh which want to obscure the truth from you and lead you away from light into darkness, away from glory and into misery and ruin. So stand fast in the Lord, beloved, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. Pay attention to it as to a lamp shining in a dark place. For the light of truth has dawned in your heart. The bright morning star casts His beams into the darkest depths of your sinful being. As St Paul urges the brethren in Rome, “Cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light.” As our Lord says in John’s Gospel, “Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overcome you” and “Believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” Cast off the works of darkness, Christian. Crucify your old sinful flesh and repent. The word shines in your heart and Christ conquers your darkness. Your sinful flesh will always want to say, “Well, if His light shines in my heart, let it shine in the upper chambers, but we’ll keep the dark secrets hidden in the closets. Let the light shine so far but no further.” But Christ’s light will not be stopped. His light is not to be put under a basket but on a stand that lights the whole house. He shines into the dark corners of your being and exposes what you cling to. He finds the deep hidden wells of your darkest desires that would flood your heart and He stops them. He banishes your darkness. He casts out the black shades of sin for He is the light of light, true God of true God. He was crucified in weakness for your sake and raised in power. He is ascended on high to glory. From His glory He calls you out of darkness and into glory, out of lies into truth, out of the devil’s kingdom into the glorious liberty of the children of God, out of death, into life and eternal glory. Dear friends, sin obscures. Sin mars and mangles, sin darkens and destroys. But the light of truth always shines clear and bright. The light of truth keeps everything in your life clear. The brightness of truth is warm and cheering and life-giving—because it’s God’s word. The Son of the all-merciful, gracious, loving God speaks words of life to you. So listen to Him. The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, Amen.
Sermon for Purification Trinity and Trinity February 2, 2025 Text: Luke 2:22-32 I Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. Today the Church commemorates the purification of Mary and presentation of Jesus before God in the temple. According to the law of Moses, Mary went to the temple forty days after Jesus’ birth to be purified from the blood and agony of childbirth by sacrifice. Also according to the Law of Moses, Jesus is presented to the Lord as the firstborn from Mary’s womb. February 2 is forty days after Christmas, December 25. That’s why the Church commemorates this event today, even though we’ve already heard this reading during the Christmas season. But there’s so much in this text that I don’t need to repeat my sermon from Christmas. Today what I’d like you to see in this text is a picture of the Church’s life. II See where they are. Mary, Joseph, Jesus, and Simeon are in the temple. The temple was the Old Testament place for divine worship. God was present with His people in the temple. The temple worship wasn’t made up by men. But God gave all the instructions for worship and all the patterns for the temple to Moses on Mt Sinai. The people would gather together to worship the Lord as He commanded them. The New Testament Church doesn’t have one single building that’s super special like the temple. There’s not one place where God dwells to be with His people. But the Church does gather in God’s presence. You’ve probably heard it said that the Church isn’t the building. That’s true. We do gather in a building dedicated to the worship of God, but the Church is more than that. The Church is the assembly of God’s people. Like the Old Testament church, we don’t assemble on our own terms, but we congregate, we assemble, around the things of God. Think of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit falls on the Apostles and leads them to preach and baptize. These are divine activities that make the Church. The Church that’s gathered around the Apostles at Pentecost gathered to hear God’s word and to break bread together. This is the assembly God has instituted. And it’s not optional. We must not neglect to gather unless we are ill, in which case the Church comes to us on our sickbed. If we don’t gather in this assembly to hear, to eat, then we are not in the Church of the New Testament. III Here's the second part of the picture. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus enter the Temple at God’s command to perform the ritual purifications God ordained for Old Testament worship. In the same way, the Church gathers at God’s command to baptize, to hear God’s word and His word alone, to receive the Supper He instituted, to pray. In the Old Testament, God punished unauthorized worship. When Nadab and Abihu, Aaron’s sons, offered up their own sacrifices contrary to God’s command, they were destroyed. In the New Testament Church, we don’t make up our own worship of God. We don’t throw out communion or listening to God’s word. We don’t say, “It’d be more fun if we just entertained people the whole time, instead of preaching God’s word.” We don’t say, “Serving meals to the poor would be better than communing amongst ourselves.” No! we don’t make up our own worship, but we baptize, preach, and administer the Lord’s Supper just as God instituted, because He’s the one who said we should do it. These things are truly pleasing to Him. We don’t have to invent our own way to worship. IV Take a look at Simeon for the third part of our picture of the Church’s life. St Luke says something very important: Simeon is led into the temple by the Spirit! Even so, in the Christian Church the Spirit leads us into God’s presence to worship God’s Son in Spirit and truth. Simeon is full of the Spirit because He is a believer. He was a faithful Old Testament saint who had a promise from the Lord that he would not die until he saw the Christ, the anointed one. He spent his days in the Spirit, believing, waiting, hoping, praying, praising. Simeon’s faith reaches its goal when the Spirit leads him into the temple to see Jesus there for Him and to worship Him. As Christians, we are led by the Spirit into God’s presence to worship Jesus. God’s Holy Spirit never leads us away from the Church that’s gathered at God’s command to preach and sup. The Spirit never leads away from Jesus here for you in His word, in His Supper. Any spirit that says, “Nah, you don’t need to come to church, or you don’t need to worship Jesus, you don’t need His forgiveness given in His Holy Supper,” is not the Holy Spirit. It’s a different spirit. As St John reminds us in 1 John, “This is He who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ, not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness.” And as Jesus Himself says, “He,” the Comforter, “Will take of mine and declare it to you.” The Spirit never leads away from Jesus. The Spirit gathers people to Jesus in His Father’s Church. He only leads people to Jesus here in our midst in His word and in His Supper. V And here’s the fourth part of the picture we see of the Church in today’s reading: Jesus the Christ is at the center of it all! God’s Spirit led Simeon to Jesus in the midst of God’s temple, of the holy assembly. Today, the Holy Spirit leads us to Jesus Christ here for us because Jesus is the center of the Church. Scripture proclaims Jesus the head of the Church, His body. He’s the cornerstone, the very foundation of the Church. Without Jesus, the Church falls. But with Christ the cornerstone, the Church stands firm, solid, immovable. Look at Him with Simeon and Joseph and Mary and see just who this Jesus is who’s so central to your faith. God’s Son is placed under God’s holy law for you. There’s Jesus being presented to God under the law to purify you from your sin so that you can stand before God blameless in the assembly of His saints. Like Mary, who needed a sacrifice to purify her, you don’t enter God’s presence with a purity of your own. But an innocent life needs to cover your guilt. Your disobedience, the idolatries of your heart, the blackness of your soul, your transgressions against the holy commandments of God render you unfit for His presence. But Christ stands before God for you, pure and holy like a little dove or pigeon. And He gives His life in place of yours, that your offenses might be covered. He stands now risen before God as firstborn of His brethren that He has made holy. All who repent and believe in Him possess His righteousness and will live with God forever. Simeon sees that Jesus is there in the temple for him. See that Jesus is in your midst now for you, too. He enters your heart through His word. He joins Himself to you in His holy communion. VI Finally, see in Simeon’s response the praise the Church offers to Christ. Simeon sings for joy. But he doesn’t babble. He praises God by confessing what God’s done for him. Simeon sings that he can leave God’s temple in peace because he’s seen Jesus, his Savior, Israel’s glory, the light of the nations. God is for him and for all mankind, and so all is well. Like Simeon, we praise God for the blessings of salvation Jesus gives us today. You have the same blessings—the peace of the Lord is with you always because Christ, who made peace between you and God with His cross, is risen and is here for you. Christian praise always confesses. It’s not just emotive, but it’s always concrete. I will praise the Lord because I have seen Him here. I will thank the Lord because He gives me His peace now. Our praise and thanksgiving doesn’t end when we leave our gathering together, but it continues throughout our entire week. We gather as the Church in the Spirit to receive our Lord Jesus so that we might be strengthened to face the challenges, temptations, and sorrows of our lives in faith. We come to be strengthened in love, that we might serve our neighbors in our lives, our parents, children, spouses, siblings, friends, with Christ-like love. And every day, we give thanks to the Lord and praise His mercy in Christ Jesus. VII Life in the Church is life around and in Jesus. God calls us to gather together by the Spirit to receive our Lord Jesus’ righteousness. The church is more than a building. It’s more than a club. It’s more than just an hour on Sunday. The Church of God is one, it is holy, it is catholic, or universal. It spans all times and places. It unites heaven and earth. The Church is the congregation of the faithful who confess that the Lord Christ crucified and risen is their cornerstone, their glory, the very light of the world. He stands now in the Church’s midst for us, and so we praise Him forever. The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, Amen.
Epiphany 3 Trinity and Trinity January 26, 2025 Text: Matthew 8:1-13 Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. When you were a child, you probably asked why a lot when your dad would tell you to do something. Maybe he’d give an explanation if you were sincerely inquisitive. But often, a child’s why is not inquisitive but rebellious. So if dad said, “Get in the car” and you asked, but why? I bet you heard the famous dad retort, “Because I said so.” “Because I said so” might seem unfair and unreasonable to a pouty 5-year-old, but it’s not. Children are under their parents’ authority. What their parents say goes. That means that “Because I said so” is reason enough for children to obey. They don’t need the why. Like children who must listen to dad, we learn from our Gospel today that Christians are under Jesus’ authority. That means they listen to His word. When Jesus cleanses the leper in our text, He asserts His authority as God. The man runs up to Jesus, falls down, worships Him, and prays, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him saying, “I am willing, be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.” The leper recognizes that Jesus is God and asks Him to do something only God can do—heal perfectly. Jesus does so. His cleansing of the leper proclaims that He has the power and authority to cleanse people wholly. He does not only make the body whole, but Jesus cleanses the soul too. The body suffers from leprosy, cancer, and other deadly diseases because of sin, the corruption of both body and soul. But Jesus heals to show that as God He cleanses, purifies, and saves sinful men both in body and in soul. Jesus sends the leper to the priests in Jerusalem. He said, “Go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” Jesus sends the cleansed man to the temple to perform the ritual cleansings proscribed in the Law for those who recovered from leprosy. He says this will be a proof to them, to all Israel, that He, Jesus, has the authority to do what no one else can. When they would ask the leper how he had recovered, he would say, “The Lord Jesus healed me.” With this miracle Jesus asserts to everyone that He alone can heal and save. There are only two options. Either you are enslaved to sin and are ruled by sinful passions and lusts which eat away at your soul like leprosy destroys the flesh, or you are saved from sin by Jesus and set free from its captivity to live a new life. If you are enslaved by sin, you stand condemned before God by His word of Law which reveals sin. But if you are cleansed by Jesus, then you are purified from sin and free to live with Him and for Him. Such is His authority. The centurion who comes to Jesus and asks Him to heal his servant recognizes Jesus’ authority. He’s probably heard reports of Jesus’ miracles by now and believes that Jesus can help. When Jesus says “I will come and heal him” the centurion says that it’s enough if Jesus only speaks the word. The centurion truly believes that Jesus is God’s Son and all men are under Jesus’ authority. As an officer in the Roman army, he is a man who understands authority. He gives orders and people obey. He receives orders and executes them. And he knows that what an officer says goes. There’re no two ways about it. He recognizes that Jesus is God’s Son and powerful, and He understands that Jesus’ words are therefore weighty. When Caesar gives an order, the Roman armies submit to it and execute it. When Jesus gives a decree, “Be cleansed! Be healed!” leprosy is cured and paralysis loosens. Jesus praises the man’s faith and grants his request. Like the Centurion, you must recognize Jesus’ authority. You need to recognize the authority of Jesus’ word. What He says goes. You are under His word. That means you listen to and believe what He says. You don’t get to choose which parts to believe—you’re not in charge. But when He speaks you say, “Thanks be to God.” This is really important when Jesus talks about sin in the bible. What He says goes. Some therapists today adopt a client-driven therapy model. They let the client identify what he or she perceives is the problem and then lead them to find a solution they feel will work. Jesus does not approach sin like a therapist who allows his client to determine what the issue is. Jesus diagnoses sin like a doctor disease. A doctor tells you that the cancer is progressing and you are going to die if you don’t go through a rigorous course of chemo. You might be in denial. You might be terrified at the pain of the cure, but the diagnosis is final. Jesus gives us the Law of God in the bible. That diagnoses sin. He declares that we are sinners and He teaches us very clearly what sin is. Recognize that His word is the final diagnosis. You might live in denial and pretend that what you’re doing is somehow an exception to His word, but don’t fool yourself. If you refuse to see your sin, then you can’t receive the cure. But if you take Jesus at His word and submit to the authority of His word, then when Jesus says “Gossip is sin” “Cohabitation is sin” then it’s enough because He said so. And if you believe the diagnosis then you can receive the cure. In response to the diagnosis that you are a sinner, Jesus proclaims in His word that He has cleansed and freed you from your sins with His death and resurrection. He announces that the leprosy of sin no more enslaves you but now He rules in your heart through His word. So humble yourself with the centurion and confess that you are under authority. What Jesus says goes. Don’t be like Naman in our Old Testament lesson. He was a mighty man, a great warrior, and an adult. He was enraged by Elisha’s command to wash in the Jordan seven times. He thought such a cure beneath him. But at his servants’ pleadings he submitted to the word and was cleansed. Don’t be like Naman. But recognize Jesus’ authority like the centurion. As Jesus says later on in Matthew’s Gospel, “Except you become as little children you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” So become as a child. Recognize that in the kingdom of God “Because I said so” is answer enough. Jesus words are authoritative. What He says goes. What’s sinful is sinful because He said so. You don’t get to argue with him. And when He asserts that “You are cleansed” and when He says, “Let it be done for you as you have believed” believe what He says. When you feel guilty for the sins you have committed and wonder how? Why? God would forgive you, believe Him when He says “You are cleansed” because I gave my life to redeem you from those sins and I shed my blood to cover them. I say so. Believe Me. When you are sick and praying and praying to Jesus for healing, listen to Him when He says, “I bore your sicknesses on the cross and I am risen. Though you suffer now and find no healing in this life, my resurrection is your healing, your life, your freedom from pain. You live in my resurrection now in your baptism, and I will raise you on the last day.” I say so. Believe Me. When you are sad and feel like an empty shell, listen to Him when He says, “I have sent the Spirit of comfort into your heart. He works joy in you, a joy no one can take from you. Your joy is to know that your sins are forgiven, that you live by the power of God now, that you are in Me and I in you in my holy supper. Yes, there is sorrow here, now, but the day will come when every tear will be wiped from your eye.” I say so. Believe Me. Jesus’ words are final because He speaks them. His words are sometimes hard to swallow for adults who feel too proud to be under His authority. We don’t like His words about sin, and we might say that His words of comfort are hollow. But don’t be blind to what you’re doing. You’re having a spiritual temper tantrum that you need to repent of. As a kid you asked “Why?” to “Get in the car” because you were sullen and didn’t want to obey. You got angry when your dad pulled the “Because I said so” card because you wrongly thought that you deserved to be in charge. You would’ve rather stayed at home and sulked than listen to dad. But dad told you to get in the car because it was Thanksgiving and you were going to grandma’s house for dinner. As a Christian, Jesus speaks to you about sin so that you can be cleansed. You need to believe Him just because He says so. It doesn’t matter what you think should be sinful or not. But repent and believe when He declares that you are cleansed from sin because He is risen from dead. He is with you now in every struggle. Believe Him because He says so, whatever you feel in your heart, whatever doubts arise in your mind. Jesus gets to pull “Because I said so” on you because you are under His authority. But don’t forget why He does. Like getting in the car to go to grandma’s, Jesus calls you to sit with Him at the feast of salvation with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. He said so. So get in the car. Because there’s a place at the feast for you. Now may the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, Amen.
Sermon Outline Second Sunday After Christmas Trinity and Trinity January 5, 2025 Text: Matthew 2:13-23 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. God’s Son becomes man and He lives as a man so that we might live in Him. He rescues us from sin and death and makes us alive in Him. We live a new life in Christ. His life is our life. His death to sin, our death to sin, His resurrection, our resurrection, His holiness our holiness, His righteousness our righteousness. Your entire life as a Christian is conformed to Jesus’ life. To say it as simply as possible, if it happened to Jesus, it’ll happen to you. That is why St Peter writes in our Epistle, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings.” Christ’s life is your life. If it happened to Jesus, it’ll happen to you. That means you’ll face the trial of suffering innocently. You’ll face the world’s enmity and persecutions because Jesus faced enmity and persecution. Jesus, true God, is born of the virgin in Bethlehem. He is born free from sin. He’s pure and innocent. The Shepherds worship Him as their Savior and the Wise Men from the east come and bow before Him. You would think that no one could find fault with this child. But Herod does. He intends to kill Jesus. Joseph is warned in a dream to flee. He takes Mary and Jesus by night and goes to Egypt, far from Herod’s reach. Enraged that Jesus escaped, Herod has every baby boy two years or under living in Bethlehem killed for the sake of that child. Until he died, Herod sought Jesus’ life because he knows that Jesus wasn’t killed with the other children. The innocent Christ faced hostility and persecution. So do Christians. As Jesus Himself will later say, “No servant is above his master. But if they hate the master, what will they do to his servants?” Like the little boys born in Bethlehem, Christians face persecution from the world. The sinful unbelieving world hates the Lord Jesus. It doesn’t make sense. Jesus comes as a meek boy so that we won’t be driven away by divine holiness. But unbelief doesn’t care. Evil hates the good. And so sinful people hate the goodness of Jesus and lash out against it. They lash out against Christians, too. Herod killed those children, and countless other Christians have died for the sake of Christ after them. They die unjustly. They have committed no crime. But they confess Christ and the world hates that. We might not live in a country where people are beheaded or shot for confessing Christ, but you’re not going to go through life without facing hostility for your life as a Christian. Christians face attacks because they confess that marriage is between a man and woman only or because they confess that you can’t change yourself into a woman or a man. When you hear about Christians being fired or harassed for confessing these truths, you see the fiery trial we undergo in life, the world’s enmity. So be prepared for it. It happened in Jesus’ life. That means it might just happen in your life. But despite your innocence and your courteous demeanor, evil will lash out at you with a vengeance. Bear it patiently as a fiery trial that will test your faith. Persecution must be suffered, even if it means death. Look to Jesus. He suffered persecution and was delivered. God did not intend that Herod would kill Jesus, so it didn’t happen. Jesus went down to Egypt. Throughout the arduous journey with his parents, the young Jesus happily and cheerfully trusted in God with all the content simplicity of a two-year old. He believed that God was His God who loved Him and would preserve Him and His earthly parents. He bore the suffering in perfect faith, the faith of an infant who trusts and knows nothing of doubt or worry. Now, God allowed the other children to be killed. But Herod’s evil could only go so far. He could kill their little bodies but he could not destroy their eternal souls. They died innocently and were taken from this evil world to heaven as the first Christians persecuted for Christ’s sake. God does the same for many who suffer persecution. He supplies the strength to endure it and by His grace He gives them the power to be faithful unto death. If it happened to Jesus, it’ll happen to you. Whatever the persecution, God will give you the strength to endure it, for you belong to Jesus. His life is your life. Just as He went to the cross and endured its agony, so you can face death with His strength of will. If it happens to Jesus it’ll happen to you. Joseph was told in a dream to “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” Joseph takes Jesus and Mary back to Israel, but has to withdraw to the district of Galilee, to the town of Nazareth, for fear that Herod’s son will seek the life his father desired to take. The time of persecution ended. But a humble life of poverty began. This was in fulfillment of the Prophets words, that Christ would be despised by the world. Nazareth wasn’t a nice suburb but a dinky backwater village where the hicks lived. To say you were from Nazareth was to get the response, “Where’s that, bumpkin?” That was the life Jesus settled into in his youth. A life marked not by great prosperity or prestige but humbleness. If it happened to Jesus, it’ll happen to you. The opportunities for wealth, status, and social involvement often dry up if you want to live as a faithful Christian. The greatest success in life comes at the cost of sacrificing your values and time raising your children to fear the Lord or living with your brothers and sisters in your church. People in power don’t want boring, prissy Christians running things. They’ll make sure they keep them out. Being a Christian often means giving up what the world has to offer. But that’s because you confess that God has something more to offer you. Life eternal is better than life’s fleeting pleasures now. Look to Jesus. He wasn’t disappointed that He lacked opportunity or that His earthly parents couldn’t give Him everything you could ever wish for. But He grew up giving thanks for the simple food God gave Him to eat and for His loving parents in their small home. He was content to work as a builder until He began His ministry. The world’s disdain didn’t bother Him. For He came not to raise up a showy earthly kingdom but to offer up His innocent life on the cross and to rise glorious from the dead and ascend to reign at His Father’s right hand above the highest heavens, all so that we might be redeemed to live with Him forever. If it happened to Jesus, it’ll happen to us. Don’t be surprised that your life as a Christian will mean challenges for you. They might be big like facing death or they might be small like being snubbed by the worldly. Whatever happens, they’ll be crosses and suffering. People will depart the faith, loved ones will die, and you’ll face illness and eventually die yourself. But these things cannot hurt you eternally. They’re trials to endure but they have their end because what happens to Jesus will happen to you. He suffered and He died. But God raised Him from the dead. God vindicated Him and glorified Him. Jesus lived and died and rose so that you might live in Him, die in Him, and rise again with Him. His life is your life. God delivered Jesus and so He will deliver you. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Sermon for Advent III Trinity and Trinity December 15, 2024 Text: Matt. 11:2-10. In the Name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Where, O Christian, do you find comfort in sorrow? Where do you find confidence to remedy your doubts? Where do you find courage in the face of fear? Do you find comfort, do you find confidence, do you find courage in yourself? In other people? In things? As a Christian you reply “No! My comfort, my confidence, my courage is found only in the Lord Jesus Christ.” But how do you draw near to Jesus when brought low by sorrow, when attacked by doubts, when overwhelmed by fear? Or, to put it another way, how does Christ Jesus come to you to offer you comfort, confidence, courage in the heat of every struggle and in spite of all the suffering in your life? Does He come to you in visions and dreams? As a Christian, can you find lasting comfort that can never be taken from you when mourning the death of a spouse, and you have a dream in which your spouse comes to you and says, “Don’t be sad, the Angels told me to tell you I’m in a better place?” Or does He come to you in omens and signs? As a Christian, when you are assailed by doubts and wonder if any of it is all true, is your confidence in the faith and trust renewed because you said, “Lord, if you’re really out there, make the sun shine tomorrow morning on my way to work” and behold! You saw the clouds open and the sun shine and now you know for sure and certain that there is a God in heaven. Or does He come to you in feelings or moods? When sad, or afraid, our stricken by doubts, do you as a Christian say, “I found true and lasting comfort for my sadness, courage against my fear, confidence to banish my darkest doubts, because I felt so uplifted when I went on a walk and I felt the hand of God brushing the leaves across the path. Or because “I played my favorite songs and worked myself up until I felt so on top of the world that I could move mountains with my faith. Or “I felt and knew that God is real, that my religion is true because I went on a soul-searching pilgrimage, and in a monastery in Greece, I felt so moved by their midnight prayers with all the candles and incense that I just knew it all had to be true.” A lot of people will look for Jesus in dreams and visions, in omens and signs, in feelings and moods. But. In our Gospel something else very different happens. John is in prison for preaching. He sends his disciples to Jesus and asks a simple question, “Are you the one who is to come or do we look for another?” It would seem that John knows his time is short. And he desires that Jesus give him some last comfort as he languishes in prison, that Jesus would gift him with confidence, with courage, as he prepares to face rough treatment from Herod. Does Jesus appear in a vision to John? Does John find some sign in his prison gruel that all is well? Does he comfort himself by working himself up into frenzied feelings by singing or meditating? No. Jesus sends word to John. And He doesn’t just send any word. Jesus says to John’s disciples, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” Jesus summarizes His ministry with these words. But those words are all from the book of Isaiah. Jesus sends John’s disciples back to John with words of scripture, words of prophecy that speak of the Messiah’s work for His people: giving sight, making the deaf hear, raising the dead, and preaching, preaching good news to the poor. And Jesus says, “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” Blessed is the one who accepts this answer. Dear friends, John would have known those Scriptures from Isaiah backward and forward. He wouldn’t have missed the message. But Jesus said to him, “Here’s my answer to you. My word.” And that, O Christian, is His answer to you when you are carrying sorrows that seem so hard to shed, when you are battling doubts, when you are afraid of and overwhelmed by all the crazy things happening in your life. Jesus does come to you. He comes to replace your sorrow with joy, your doubts with confident unshakeable trust, your fear with courage. He does so in His word. And only in His word. That’s for the best. You might want a vision of a loved one speaking, you might crave a sign of your own choosing, you might desire an ecstatic mountain experience that lifts you up, but none of those will bring lasting certainty to you. They all depend on you, on your perception, on how you’re feeling. And here’s the reality: people have always sought to find comfort, confidence, courage in the face of their struggles, in things like visions, signs, experiences. Peyote or mushrooms will give you visions and dreams of all kinds. Listening to secular music will boost people’s emotions and give them an elated high. Visiting a monastery in Tibet or going on a yoga retreat in Colorado will give people spiritual experiences they trust in. And every experience, every emotion you try to take refuge in will lose its power eventually. A dream might give you certainty for a time, but eventually you’ll just tell “yourself, oh, it was a bad night’s sleep is all.” A sign in nature can be reinterpreted. “The sun just shone that day because the pressure changed and a clear front came in.” And an emotional experience will also lose its power. You can’t feel the wonder of a midnight service or the goosebumps of your favorite song forever. It’ll fade. It’ll die away. And your every problem, your sadness, your fears, your doubts, will return. That is because nothing we feel or try or do can solve and fix the mess of our lives. We are sinful flesh. And as Isaiah the prophet says in our Old Testament Scripture this morning, “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty (that means it’s splendor, its strength, its all) is like a flower of the field, The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass.” As a flower of the field, as grass, you flourish and fade. Your emotions will wax and wane and imprison you. You can’t escape yourself by chasing emotional highs or experiences. But the evil within you will win every time and overwhelm your every solution. Yes, the grass withers, the flower fades, but—"the word of our God will stand forever.” That is why Jesus comforts, strengthens, encourages, John with the word. Sinful flesh fades but God’s word stands forever. It does not change. The word pronounces judgement on all. But the word announces pardon and life for all through the work of the promised Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ. He takes on flesh to bear our iniquities and diseases in His own body on the tree of the cross. He comes to heal in body and soul. He comes to preach good news to the poor, the impoverished in spirit. He says, “Though you fade like grass, I have died for you, I have been planted in the grave for you, and I have risen, sprouted up to new life eternal for you. In my crucified body you are dead to your sins, dead to your fears, sorrows, and doubts, and you live in me, in the glory of my resurrection. I speak to you now. You have my word. In it I proclaim that I am with you now, to visit you in your sorrow, to encourage you, to strengthen you. One day your struggles will end, but until then listen to me and rejoice.” So are you seeking an experience, or listening for a word? Because Jesus speaks to you today in His word. He gives an answer to you in the midst of your sorrows, your doubts, your fears. He says in the words of institution, “Come here, take, eat, take drink.” Whenever you open the Scriptures and read them, Jesus speaks there to you. Dreams, and signs, and feelings all come from inside you. They offer no certainty. But Jesus’ words to you are outside of you and they do not change. He speaks the same word to every person on this globe, no matter how they are feeling. He tells them to rejoice, for He has died and is risen. He is the Savior. He is coming soon. Believe that and rejoice. Where shall you go for your comfort in sorrow, your confidence in doubt, your courage in fear? Alleluia! To Jesus’ word, the word of life, the word of truth which does not change but stands forever. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Sermon for Advent II Trinity and Trinity December 8, 2024 Text: Luke 21:25-36 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Dear friends in Christ, in the Nicene Creed we recite every Sunday, we confess that Jesus will come again to judge the living and the dead. We confess Christ’s return because in His word, Jesus teaches us that He will return. In our Gospel from Luke this morning Jesus says, “The powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” This day is coming. But it’s also holiday season. Just the other weekend, you probably gathered with family and spent time together. In a couple weeks, you’ll probably be spending more time with family and friends. Maybe this isn’t your family, but chances are that if you are an American in 2024, you’re going to spend Christmas with unbelievers. There’s probably at least someone, and sadly, maybe many someones, who haven’t been to church since before Covid, or maybe not for years and years, or even never. That’s a troubling thought for you who confess that Jesus will come again to judge the living and the dead. You know that He will come suddenly as a thief in the night. And then we will all face the Son of Man and His judgement. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, what I’d like to do this morning is to meditate on how we can witness family and friends in this Advent season as Christmas draws near. How do we witness the truth to others? First, by pointing to God’s judgement. In our Gospel text, Jesus tells us about the signs of His coming. “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world,” And then He says, “Look at the fig tree and all trees. As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.” We talked about these words several weeks ago from St Mark’s Gospel. If you recall, we talked about how the signs that Christ is near are all around. All the natural disasters, all the wars, all the discord and strife around us, shows us that God’s judgement is just around the corner. Now I don’t know about your friends and family, but these days it does seem that people, no matter their perspective or belief, are pretty riled up and upset about the world, about wars happening all over, about the tension and strife in our own country. Here’s something to think about: when people bring these things up, how about using it as an opportunity to witness? Because you have all the answers. If people are talking about natural disasters or pollution, you can say, “Yeah. It’s a sign of God’s judgement. We’re sinners and this world is falling apart. So God sends curses and calamities our way to punish us and lead us to see that we’re sinful and we need to repent.” Or how about this: when people lament their illnesses you have an answer. You can say, “Well, maybe God your illness is God’s judgement. No one deserves to live forever. We deserve death. Illness is a punishment in this world for our sin. But our sicknesses make us think about the end, and maybe God’s given you pain and sickness so that you can learn to fear Him and seek His salvation and life eternal.” This might seem really awkward. But talking about judgement and sin is necessary. Read the book of Acts. St Paul, the great missionary to the Gentiles, always starts off by saying that the day of judgement is coming. And so everybody needs to wake up and be alert! St Paul does this, and we should do it too, because it’s part of how people come to faith. We must first preach God’s law. His word which reveals our sin and His wrath over sin, so that secure sinners wake up, so that they feel the terrors of conscience and grow worried because they recognize that God’s word truthfully reveals the real state of their hearts—full of sin. People who don’t believe they’re sinners and don’t fear God’s wrath could care less about Jesus born in a manger or Jesus nailed on the cross for them. How weird! How stupid But when someone is terrified about the fact that he’s a sinner, then the proclamation that Jesus is His Savior will be good news. So don’t shy away from talking about the judgment if you have an opportunity. At the very least it might plant a seed that’ll sprout. Now there’s also a second way to witness to people in Advent and Christmas. And it’s really simple. Invite them to come. Simply say like Phillip to Nathanael, “Come and see.” We’re having plenty of services around Christmas. Christmas Eve here, and Christmas Day up in Sugar Grove. New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day services, an Epiphany service, the Christmas program and auction. Think of all the people you know that haven’t been to church much. Friends, family, neighbors down the road, coworkers. Just invite them. Say, “You’ll enjoy it! A candlelight Christmas Eve atmosphere will be great. The Christmas day service will be glorious and joyful!” Maybe it’s not been your custom to go up to Sugar Grove or down to Logan for all the services, but consider doing that this year, especially if you’re hosting. Say, “Come on! Let’s go to the service.” When we bring people to Church, we bring them into the Lord’s house where they will hear His word. And you get to help them through the service and tell afterward what it all meant. “We say a confession of sins every week because we’re all sinners in need of forgiveness, forgiveness God gives us freely! We’re in need of hearing God’s word every week and learning from it, and so we read from all portions of the bible and hear preaching. They’re the words of life! We’re in need of strength and assurance and we come to receive Jesus’ body and blood at His altar. Being a Christian is so wonderful. Our Lord Jesus is with us. He’s not far away from us. But He’s here for us. That’s the center of my life. That’s what I’m all about.” Such a witness is powerful. Bringing folks to church gives an opportunity for them to hear the word, to be convicted of their sins, and to hear the promise of forgiveness. So consider inviting folks to some of the services. Now, how do we witness? There’s a third way. That’s by taking heed to ourselves. As Jesus says, in our Gospel text, “Watch yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come suddenly upon you like a thief.” The simple truth is, we’re not going to witness to anyone if we ourselves have strayed. So this Advent, watch yourself. Do you need to repent of sins which shame you as a Christian? Do you need to confess that your prayers and study of the Scriptures is lacking? That your conduct has not been pure and holy? Do. Repent and receive forgiveness and renew your Christian life with zeal. People often say, “The church is full of hypocrites” as an excuse to not attend. Never concede to that. Say, “You’re wrong. My church is not full of hypocrites. Maybe you’ve met someone who was, fine. But how would you know that the church is full of hypocrites? You never go. Besides, the Christian life isn’t about reaching perfection here. But being a Christian is about repenting of your sins and fighting against them. It’s about receiving forgiveness.” The person who judges others as hypocrites and turns around and sins is the real hypocrite. That being said, we do not want people to blaspheme the name of God because we are impenitent. Instead, we want to witness to people, not by a phony life of appearances, but by watching out for ourselves. That means living a life of repentance. A life of turning from sin, being forgiven, and taking up the cross once more. What a powerful witness to say to someone, “Yeah, I really messed up the other day. It’s shameful. But I went and confessed my sins. I went to church and received Christ’s body and blood for forgiveness. What a wonder that God has mercy on unworthy me, that He has mercy on us all, on you, too.” Finally, the fourth answer to “how do we witness” is by living in hope. Talking about going out and witnessing to friends and family this month might seem intimidating. It might even seem scary as you play in your mind the horrible scenarios of family getting angry because you mentioned “God” and storming off, or friends ghosting you after you invite them to church. It might seem like you don’t have the words, that you won’t be able to do it, that you’ll seem crazy. But don’t be afraid. Don’t be worried. Be confident. Because you live in hope, not fear. You’re not afraid of God’s coming judgement because you believe that Jesus has saved you from God’s judgement. He died on the cross for your sins, He rose again from the dead to secure you life eternal. He’s brought you to faith through His word by the power of the Holy Spirit. He assures you that He’s pleased with you. You continually receive the forgiveness of sins from Him. He does not turn you away, but He’s keeping you in the faith He’s created in your heart until you meet Him on the final day. You’re waiting for the time when He will return and not say a word against you but grant you eternal life with Him. That’s your hope, that’s what you’re waiting for. It’s not in front of you. But you know it’s coming. Your hope should give you peace. You’re not afraid of God’s judgement—so don’t be afraid of anyone else! Jesus is Lord. He’ll look out for you. We know that we can’t change anybody’s heart. Only God can. But He promises to do so through His word. He tells us in His word that He desires all men to be saved. He is at work to so. So we pray that the Lord would open the hearts of unbelievers and would give us opportunity to speak His word to them. We pray for opportune moments, we pray those we witness to would be receptive not hostile. And we leave it at that. Our inability to confess the Gospel as clearly as we’d like or to put things just the right way is not an impediment to bringing people to faith. Because people aren’t converted by our persuasion but by the powerful word of God. As Christians we are free to share the word. We can do so joyfully, confidently. We came to faith through the word, and so will other people. We might not see the effect but that’s alright. We don’t convert anyone. God does. The Son of Man is coming soon. We live in hope for that day because we’ve been redeemed for that day by the blood of Jesus. The Church prays that others too would share the same hope, and the Church bears witness that by God’s grace it might become theirs, too. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Sermon for Advent I Trinity and Trinity November 27, 2024 Text: Matt. 21:1-9 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. “Behold! Your king is coming to you” declares the prophet. That’s what Advent is all about. Advent means “To come” or “appear” in Latin. Last Sunday ended the church year by remembering that Christ is coming soon. Advent is the beginning of the Church year. Advent begins by reminding us that the Jesus who is coming soon is the Jesus who came in the flesh. Jesus’ coming was foretold by the prophets and it really happened. Jesus’ second coming is promised—and it’ll really happen! Today we hear about Jesus’ coming, His entry into Jerusalem to die on the cross. And there in a nutshell you have what it’s all about. Jesus comes to save. That’s why Jesus became man. The Son of God took on human flesh and was born of the virgin Mary to save us from our sins. Jesus’ entire earthly ministry, His teachings, miracles, healings, sufferings, are all headed toward His entry into Jerusalem on that week of the Passover. When Jesus comes into Jerusalem, His entry fulfills the Old Testament prophecies that talk about the Messiah’s coming. In Bethpage just outside Jerusalem, Jesus sends two of His disciples before Him to the Mount of Olives. He says, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once. This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” See how Jesus enters! He enters with kingly authority. Two of Jesus’ disciples go and grab a donkey and her colt for His use. No bartering, only “The Lord needs them.” And that’s reason enough because He’s King. Jesus is King but see how Jesus enters as King. Not on a steed, not in a chariot, but on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden. Behold! O daughter of Zion, your king is coming to you humble. Jesus comes to Jerusalem to save His people. And for that He is greeted with loud cries of Hosanna! Which means save us now! He is greeted with hymns of praise, “Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!” and palm branches and cloaks are strewn before Him. Dear friends, we rejoice that Jesus came to Jerusalem to save. He didn’t go there to save only Israel, but to be the Savior of the world. There is Jesus’ humility. Though king He lays down His life for His wayward subjects. Though Lord He pays the debts we owe. He uses His power not to condemn us but to save us. We do not deserve such grace. When Christ comes victorious we should be the ones dragged off and executed like the rebels we are. But that’s grace, it is undeserved. Christ comes to Jerusalem to win us salvation from sin. He dies that we might be pardoned. Truly, Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! On this first Sunday of Advent, we also consider how Jesus comes to us now. He comes today meekly, not on a donkey, perhaps, but humbly all the same. He comes under bread and wine to give the salvation He won on the cross to you. Just as He entered Jerusalem on that day powerful, as king, and yet came to serve, so Jesus comes as your king, powerful, and yet here to serve. You don’t prepare a banquet for Him, but He makes this altar the table to serve His royal meal. He invites you to it with those words, “Take, eat,” and “Drink of it, all of you.” He does more than you can comprehend. He is your king, and yet He withholds nothing but gives all He has to you, Himself. His very body crucified on the cross and risen from the dead. His blood shed to win forgiveness for your sins. Why does He do this? Because He loves you and all His people. He knows well the struggles each of you face. He knows what temptations are before you. He knows what sins you are prey to. And His answer to your struggles of body and soul, to your sins, is to call you to repentance, to turn from your sins, to cast your burdens upon Him, and to come be forgiven. Come be renewed. Come be refreshed. The Holy Supper is called Jesus’ last will and testament. It’s His final answer to every spiritual struggle in a Christian’s life. In the midst of doubt it assures you with the promise that Christ is not far but near, that the forgiveness won on the cross is not far but here, for you. In the midst of sickness Jesus assures you that eternal healing is yours here, in Him. In the midst of sorrow Jesus assures you here that He is with you, He in you and you in Him, and that nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus your Lord received here, now. What a precious gift! God enthroned comes to down to give Himself to us. That’s why we sing, “Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna, in the Highest! Blessed is He! Blessed is He! Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the Highest! For as surely as that crowd saw Jesus coming to them to die on the cross, even so does our Lord crucified and risen come in humble form to us today. This gift is incomprehensible. It is the great treasure of the Church. Baptism and preaching and the Lord’s Supper are the wonderful gifts God gives to bestow salvation won on the cross to us. And so today as a congregation, we begin to offer communion every week. Jesus does not command us to have the Lord’s Supper so many times per year. He invites us to come and promises to give, to forgive. To hold a weekly communion is not about forcing people to commune more often. It’s certainly not about making the Divine Service longer. A weekly communion has only one motivation. It’s this: because of sin and Satan, people’s lives are so messy, so full of struggle, so full of tragedy, so full of sin, so full of guilt over sin, so full of heartache, so full of tears, so full of yearning, so in need of peace, so in need of assurance, so in need of comfort, so in need of love, so in need of belonging, so in need of healing, so in need of encouragement, so in need of forgiveness, that there will always be one saint of God in the pews for whom those words, “The body of Christ, given for you,” “The blood of Christ, shed for you” and that mouthful of bread and sip of wine are life-changing, and will mean everything in a way that no sermon, however powerful, and no word of brotherly encouragement, however timely, will. Why is that? Because it really is Jesus’ body and blood for you. Given to you. And that will always make it worth the added set up and extra fifteen minutes. Dear friends, we are very blessed. Our King comes. He announces His presence in our lives in His Word. He comes to dine with us in His Supper. The one who died for your life is Lord of your life. He has freed you from sin. He delivers you from every evil. To Him you bow. In Him you live. So sing your Hosannas now and bless Him who comes in the Name of the Lord to save you. In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.