Trinity 16 - 2024. The Widow's Son

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Jan Verhas  (1834–1896) 

Hymn #428        I Am Trusting Thee, Lord Jesus    

The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16

Introit

Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto Thee daily.

For Thou, Lord, art good and ready to forgive: 

and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Thee.

Psalm. Bow down Thine ear, O Lord, hear me: 

for I am poor and needy.

The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19

Collect

Lord, we pray Thee that Thy grace may always go before and follow after us and make us continually to be given to all good works; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.

The Epistle and Gradual       

Gradual

The heathen shall fear the name of the Lord: 

and all the kings of the earth Thy glory.

V. When the Lord shall build up Zion: 

He shall appear in His glory. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

V. Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord: He is their Help and their Shield. Hallelujah!

The Gospel              

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed             p. 22

Sermon Hymn #200    I Know That My Redeemer Lives

                           Weep not. Arise!

Communion Hymn # 313      O Lord We Praise Thee

The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
Hymn #657             Beautiful Savior   

                    Prayers and Announcements

• Lori Howell is five years free of cancer.
• In our prayers - Sarah Buck, Pastor Jim and Chris Shrader, Dr. Lito Cruz and family.
• Dr. Kermit Way celebrates his 85th birthday on Saturday.
• Gary Meyer passed into eternal life - September 17, 2014.

 

                     Luther's Sermon on the Epistle, Ephesians 3:13-21        

KJV Ephesians 3:13 Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power [dynamis, dynamite, Holy Spirit] that worketh [energy, efficacy] in us, 21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

KJV Luke 7:11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. 12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. 14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. 15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. 17 And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.

SIXTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Lord God, heavenly Father, who didst send Thy Son to be made flesh, that by His death He might atone for our sins and deliver us from eternal death: We pray Thee, confirm in our hearts the hope that our Lord Jesus Christ, who with but a word raised the widow's son, in like manner will raise us on the last day, and grant us eternal life: through Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Weep Not, Arise!

KJV Luke 7:11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.

This took place the day after Jesus cured the centurion's servant. Some people may think, "Oh, centurion, a Roman soldier." More than that, he was a very influential Roman solider, and he was worthy of respect, and stood for the Roman Empire, its power, its wealth, its laws, and its very strict government. Jesus cured the centurion's servant simply by declaring the man healthy again, without going to the house. I am pointing this out because Luke is so careful with his details. The Gospels are so condensed that the least detail (to us) has great important. Here it is - a crowd followed Jesus and the disciples to Nain, after they saw that the centurion's deathly ill servant had been healed. 

Luke 7:10 And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant whole that had been sick. 11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.

Would anyone follow such a miraculous cure, wherever Jesus was going? These people were witnesses of the centurion's servant's grave illness. The centurion had faith and sent people to have Jesus come and heal the servant. The officer was highly respected and loved because he built a synagogue for the Jews. Notice how much was recorded so we can see that the ending of one miracle began the next one - in Nain.

12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.

Jesus, His disciples, and the Capernaum crowd came to Nain. The crowd already believed in the Word of Jesus, because they saw it happen, as intermediaries. There they saw and quickly learned that the funeral meant someone had died - this was a funeral procession, something we still practice with a group following. Details - the person who died was the only son and she was a widow. This was a disaster for her, because that son was her sole support and now he was gone. One moment he was healthy and helping his mother, then he died. No other children, no Social Security, nothing but fear and gloom.

14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.

Luke's precise details make the miracles even more powerful. He regarded the centurion's faith and agreed - via the intermediaries - to heal that servant. This was even more important and noteworthy - those witnesses and the disciples were with Him. First, He touched the bier that carried the young man. Everyone carrying the burden stood still. Jesus addressed the son and declared, "Young man, I say to you, Arise!"

This meant three groups of witnesses were present:

1. The people who saw that the centurion's servant was alive and healthy - once Jesus spoke His healing Word - without Him being there. 
2. The disciples.
3. The widow, her son, and the funeral procession.

Given the miracle the Capernaum residents experienced, they had a foundation for what happened when Jesus gave the widow's son life.  

Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.

This is the Creating Word of the Son of God, who executed the commands at the beginning of time. John 1:3 is clear on this:

I am inclined to think, "Where can I stop on the effectiveness (efficacy) of the Word?" Most clergy will say, "The what?" 

The Spirit teaches us about the Father and the Son. Hoenecke (WELS) said clearly - "The Spirit never without the Word, the Word never without the Spirit. That is sound doctrine." Children grasp this truth, saying, "Jesus is God. Jesus can do anything." 

15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.

When Jesus said, "Arise" He turned death into life - and sorrow into joy. That is how powerful the Word of God is. The miracles of Jesus are in the Bible to prove His divinity, power, and compassion. We can see why our country has spun out of control. Lacking faith in God, people are fearful. Those two are opposites. As the disciples said in the midst of a great storm, "Master, don't you care if we die?" 

Lack of Biblical knowledge, especially in the clergy, has created an open space where all kinds of nonsense takes over. That is why the clergy and professors have developed the dry rationalism of rejecting anything divine in the Bible. 

The clergy turn the miracles into something else, the divinity of Christ ignored if not ridiculed. That is why I have grouped the Big Five together - ELCA-LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC (sic). Every single group rejects Justification by Faith, the Chief Article of Christianity. When faith in Jesus Christ is denied, ridiculed, and twisted into universal salvation, all the demons of Hell begin to establish themselves. The unity of apostasy is the tie that binds them together - with the Church of Rome. If they cannot teach the Virgin Birth of Christ and His actual Resurrection, they can spend thousands of dollars on incense, expensive crosses, and lavish costumes that would make QVC blush and stammer.

I know two "Lutheran" pastors (orthodox, eh?) who embraced Atheism after being excited and dazzled with Church Growth vomit. The clergy are often the most vulnerable because the warfare never quits between Satan and God.

That is the big picture. The little picture is individual - parents need to teach the Scriptures and prayer to their children. Each adult, old enough to get married, should establish worship, prayer, and Scripture reading. I know from my pilgrimages to WM that people bypass good inexpensive food and pile up expensive stacks of calories, fat, sugars, and salt - almost empty of value. One cashier looked at my combination of frozen greens, vegetables, fresh fruit, and some sausage. She was alarmed, angry, and said so!

I have heard lots of responses like that - concerning the Christian faith. They want to hush the sound of the Word of God, by laughing at it, by suppressing it, by going after that dangerous person who believes the Word of God is effective and inerrant.

We are all the widow's son but we do not know what the calendar says. In some situations, perhaps quite a few, the Good Shepherd speaks and everything stops. The 23rd Psalm and John 10 - plus many other passages like this one - see and understand God's message. In short, John 10, the Shepherd leads us to green pastures and drives away the hungry wolves. The believer is always with the Good Shepherd whether on this side or eternity.